Astronomers have made an extraordinary discovery—a rocky planet orbiting a white dwarf, a burned-out star. This finding provides fascinating insights into the fate of planetary systems after their host stars die.
What is a White Dwarf Star?
A white dwarf is the remnant of a star that has exhausted its nuclear fuel and shed its outer layers, leaving behind a dense, stellar core. These stars form after a planetary nebula phase and mark the final stage in the life cycle of most stars, including our Sun.
The Chandrasekhar Limit is the maximum mass for a white dwarf, set at 1.44 times the mass of the Sun. If a star's core exceeds this limit, it evolves into either a neutron star or a black hole, depending on its mass.
This discovery of a rocky planet orbiting such a star sheds light on the survival of planets even after their host stars have died.
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