Astronomers find hidden star, crack cosmic dust puzzle
Astronomers just spotted a hidden companion star orbiting Kappa Tucanae A, about 70 light-years away.
This system is surrounded by super-hot dust—over 1,000°F—which had everyone puzzled because it shouldn't survive that heat.
The find happened thanks to detailed observations made between 2022 and 2024.
Surprise: Companion star's wild orbit explains the mystery
While tracking the dust, researchers unexpectedly found another star swinging in a super-close, loopy orbit—closer than Mercury is to our Sun.
This path takes it right through the dusty region, making scientists confident the companion is dynamically interacting with the dust.
As co-author Steve Ertel put it, "There's basically no way that this companion is not somehow connected to that dust production."
Why this matters for finding new worlds
This discovery could help solve why hot dust keeps showing up around some stars—a big deal since this kind of dust makes spotting Earth-like exoplanets much harder.
Next up: figuring out if things like magnetic fields or comets are feeding the dust and what that means for future planet hunts.