Stories
Astronomers Discover First Ever Planet Born From A Dead Star
- •Researchers at the University of Warwick have found what appears to be the first second-generation planet orbiting a white dwarf star.
- •The planet likely formed from material shed by the star as it died, carrying a unique chemical signature of heavy elements like zinc, copper, and niobium.
- •Data from NASA's TESS satellite revealed a faint, regular brightness signal every 4.4 days, suggesting a Jupiter-sized gas giant in a tight orbit.
- •The rare formation process likely required a companion star to pull the ejected material back into orbit rather than letting it escape.
Key Questions Answered
A second-generation planet is a world believed to have condensed from a new disc of material created as a star died, rather than forming from the original star system's primordial disc. In the study published in Nature Astronomy, researchers found evidence of what appears to be the first such planet orbiting the white dwarf HS 0209+0832.
Researchers detected unusual chemical signatures in the atmosphere of the white dwarf HS 0209+0832, including heavy elements like zinc, copper, and niobium created when a star dies. Additionally, data from NASA's TESS satellite revealed a faint, regular brightness signal repeating every 4.4 days, pointing to a Jupiter-sized gas giant in a tight orbit.
A single, isolated star typically sheds mass in a roughly symmetrical way when it dies, causing the material to escape. To form a disc capable of birthing a planet, the white dwarf likely needed a companion star to pull the ejected material back into orbit.
