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This is what it looks like when a planet gets blasted to bits by its star. Data left, interpretation right.
We can study the inner structure of a dying planet, 140 light years from Earth, as it is peeled away by its star, layer by layer.
https://news.mit.edu/2025/astronomers-discover-planet-thats-rapidly-disintegrating-producing-comet-tail-0422 #space #science #death
A disintegrating planet orbits a giant star. βThe extent of the tail is gargantuan, stretching up to 9 million kilometers long,β says Marc Hon, a postdoc in MITβs Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research.
TESS light curve of star BD+05 4868 A as it is obscured by its planet.