There are two small stars that are in the final stage of their lives far away in the depths of the Milky Way. The remains of planets have been found around white dwarfs WDJ2147-4035 and WDJ1922+0233 which are among the oldest stars in our galaxy.
Astronomers looked at this system using data from GAIA, the Dark Energy Survey, and the X-Shooter instrument. There are clumps of dust and rock created during planetary formation. The researchers looked at the light coming from the two white dwarf stars and broke it down into different wavelength so they could see what the stars and the surrounding matter were made of.
One of the stars has a red color, showing the presence of several minerals. The other star is blue because of its atmosphere. The metallic elements around the stars are thought to have come from planets.
There are other planetary systems out there with planetary bodies similar to the Earth, according to the lead author of the study. White dwarfs are so common around the universe that they are very important to understand. Cool white dwarfs formed from the oldest stars in our galaxy give information on the formation and evolution of planetary systems around the oldest stars.
Astronomers can use ancient planetary systems like this one to understand how the galaxy has evolved as metal elements become more abundant over time.
The oldest stellar remnants are polluted by once Earth- like planets. It is amazing to think that the planets were dead before the Earth was even formed.
The research is published in a journal.
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