Wednesday, June 24, 2026

Astronomers Find Stellar Evidence of an Engulfed Planet

The path of a planet as it spirals into its star. The result is that the event tears the planet apart and sucks its elements into the star. Image credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Ralf Crawford (STScI)

A team of 14 researchers from the United States and Chile have found evidence of a subgiant star eating one of its planets. The star, called TOI-5882, was already known to astronomers because of its massive companion, a brown dwarf called TOI-5882 b. The companion may well have helped kick a planet onto a spiraling journey into the star.



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