Photo. NASA
Such hopes are provided by a fragment of the planet from the SDSS system J122859.93 + 104032.9. Planetezymal survived the death of his native star in an unusual way, and now he is circling a white dwarf that devours fragments of the old planet.
Astronomers believe that in 5 billion years, the Sun will run out of fuel and start dying. Before this happens, it will increase its diameter absorbing Mercury, Venus and Earth. Later, it will most likely turn into a white dwarf that will begin to attract to itself and disrupt the other celestial bodies in the solar system. It turns out, however, that our planet can survive these catastrophic events.
What's most interesting, the discovered planet, which once had the size of the Earth, before the expansion of its star, circulated in its very close neighborhood, and yet it remained. White dwarfs are one of the most dynamic objects in the Universe. They can be compared with cosmic vacuum cleaners, which suck in the matter around them and develop thanks to it. This is because they have strong gravity, 100,000 times stronger than Earth.
The new discovery deserves much attention and shows us that our planet can survive the expansion and death of our star if the Sun turns into a white dwarf. The future rich in iron and nickel of the planet's core may be torn apart by a white dwarf, but objects of this type that are further away from their stars may remain.
Researchers at the University of Warwick want to take advantage of the new discovery and data obtained by observing the SDSS system J122859.93 + 104032.9, through Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) in La Palma, to try to predict the future of similar planetary systems in this regard, as well as our . On this basis, astronomers want to discover new objects in foreign planetary systems that have been hiding from their eyes faster and more precisely.
Source: GeekWeek.pl/University of Warwick / Fot. University of Warwick / Mark Garlick>