JOURNAL ARTICLE

Planets around dead stars offer glimpse of the Solar System's future—after the Sun swallows us up.

  • Published In: Sciencemag.org, 2024. P. N.PAG 1 of 3

  • Database: Applied Science & Technology Source Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: O'Callaghan, Jonathan 3 of 3

Abstract

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has discovered planets orbiting white dwarfs, providing insight into the future of our Solar System. In about 5 billion years, the Sun will expand into a red giant, potentially consuming Mercury, Venus, and Earth. However, the new discovery suggests that even if the outer planets avoid being swallowed up, they may still be pulled in or ejected from the Solar System. The JWST has directly imaged planets on Solar System-like orbits around white dwarfs, indicating that planets like Jupiter and Saturn could survive the evolution of their star into a white dwarf. [Extracted from the article]

Additional Information

  • Source:Sciencemag.org. 2024/01, pN.PAG
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Publication Date:2024
  • Accession Number:175198767
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