Astronomers discover second-generation planet made by dying star
A reanalysis of Hubble data found niobium and other heavy elements, pointing to a Jupiter-sized gas giant formed from a dying star’s expelled material.
- On Monday, Warwick researchers reported evidence of a 'phoenix planet' orbiting white dwarf HS 0209+0832, a potential second-generation world formed from debris left behind after the star's death.
- Unlike first-generation planets like Earth that emerge during a star's birth, second-generation planets form from material cast off during a star's final stages, as this candidate did.
- TESS data indicates a gas giant orbiting the system every 4.4 days, and astronomers identified unusual niobium levels in the star's atmosphere suggesting accretion from nearby debris.
- This finding suggests our own solar system might host similar worlds after the Sun burns out in roughly five billion years, though the new world is too hot for life.
- Researchers plan to use the James Webb Space Telescope to observe the system over the next year, which could confirm the planet and establish an entirely new planetary class around white dwarfs.
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187 Articles
For the first time, astronomers have identified a green star, a dense stellar vestige called "white dwarf", which has taken a ghostly shade of Chartreuse green after absorbing rocky debris...
280 light-years separate the Earth from WD J1330+6435. The star, recently discovered, causes astonishment and delight among researchers – because of its color.
Study describes a white dwarf that turned green due to materials falling into its atmosphere. The post Astronomers surprised by the first known green star appeared first on in.gr.
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Artistic image of the white dwarf star WDJ1330+6435 October 14, 2026 Mark A. Garlick/University of Warwick/Disclosure via REUTERS For the first time, astronomers identified a green star, recording a star-like density called a white dwarf that acquired a ghostly tone of yellowish-green after absorbing rocky debris from planets that had once orbited around it. The color of a star is usually determined by its temperature: the coldest stars have an …
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