#thought #planeteating #stars #common
It is much more common than previously thought.
Stars are a source of life, but they also devour planets | Image created by AI
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Astronomy is something that never stops giving us truly distinguished moments. On many occasions, we forget that we are a speck of dust in the infinity of space and that there are truly unique systems out there. Now, researchers have discovered phenomena that were once thought more remote and that are now They could be more common than we thought. One of them is, precisely, that of planet-devouring stars.
Twin binary stars devour planets
A recent study published in the journal Nature has been able to illuminate something quite unknown about the stability of our solar system compared to other star systems. The findings suggest that our system is one of the most stable, repeating its orbital cycle uninterrupted for at least 4.5 billion years. This does not happen in other places where there are planet-eating stars as the study by Fan Liu’s team points out.
The study focused on so-called co-natal systems, those binary systems where two twin stars coexist in mass and composition. These systems present more complex dynamics and, therefore, greater instability. This is notable, since these are specific systems; in others, although they are binary systems, one has a different mass than the other, as we can see in the that has just exploded and that can be seen with the naked eye in Corona Borealis.
The researchers intensively analyzed 91 of these binary systems for clues that would reveal whether any of the stars had devoured a planet at some point. This can be deduced from the chemical composition of the planet, presenting elements that are much more abundant on planets such as nickel, iron or titanium.
After examining these 91 co-natals, scientists found evidence of stars devouring planets in 12 of them. This figure, higher than expected, suggests that approximately one in twelve stars in the universe could be a “planet killer.” On the other hand, our Solar System seems to have avoided this fate thanks to its simpler configuration, with a single central star, and the ability to maintain stable planetary orbits for billions of years without significant perturbations. For example, the orbits of other systems are much more complex, causing planets collapse and create new ones.
To summarize:
- A new study suggests that our solar system is very stable and repeats its cycle for 4.5 billion years without pause.
- However, binary systems with two mass twin stars are considerably less stable than ours.
- A study has analyzed them to look for clues as to whether any of these stars would have devoured a planet.
- This is evidenced when there is an abundance of elements such as nickel, iron or titanium in its composition.
- After studying 91 binary systems, they realized that there were twelve planet-devouring starsa great quantity.
- The Solar System, for its part, is quite stable thanks to the fact that it only has one star and its ability to maintain its orbits unchanged for billions of years.
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