Warwick team finds candidate 2nd generation planet orbiting HS 0209+0832
Astronomers have found what looks like the first second-generation planet orbiting a white dwarf, literally made out of star ashes.
This new world orbits a white dwarf called HS 0209+0832, and it's got astronomers rethinking how planets can form, even after a star's dramatic end.
The discovery comes from a team at the University of Warwick and was published in Nature Astronomy.
TESS finds Jupiter-sized planet losing atmosphere
Using NASA's TESS satellite, researchers detected a faint, regular brightness signal coming directly from the planet, repeating every 4.4 days, evidence of a Jupiter-sized gas giant circling close by.
The planet is actually losing its atmosphere to intense radiation from the white dwarf, which explains why there are so many heavy elements like zinc and niobium around.
This rare find helps scientists understand how planets might also form anew around white dwarfs, opening up some pretty cool questions about what else could be out there.