Astronomers at the Gemini South telescope in Chile have made a groundbreaking discovery, providing the first direct evidence of a Sun-like star engulfing an exoplanet. The event was indicated by a long, low-energy outburst, a clear signature of a planet skimming the surface of its star, observed approximately 13,000 light-years away. This phenomenon could foreshadow the fate of Earth when our Sun enters its final stages in about five billion years, expanding to consume its inner planets.
The study of various stellar evolution stages has shown that as a Sun-like star exhausts its hydrogen fuel, it transforms into a red giant, expanding significantly and likely engulfing nearby planets. Researchers confirmed this planetary engulfment event, named ZTF SLRN-2020, with data from both optical and infrared sources, leading to insights on stellar and exoplanet characteristics. The outburst lasted about 100 days, producing approximately 33 Earth masses of hydrogen and about 0.33 Earth masses of dust, contributing to cosmic recycling.
This historic observation enhances our understanding of the evolution and demise of planetary systems and may help identify similar occurrences as new telescopes come online in the future.
