Astronomers have found a structure of gas and dust around a dead star that may show the solar system’s final chapter. The star sits 1,600 light-years from Earth.
The system contains two separate rings. Researchers think these rings are the crushed remains of planets that once orbited the star.
The discovery offers a rare look at what happens after a star dies. Dying stars can strip and destroy their inner planets.
Material from those planets may linger as glowing bands of debris. These rings can persist long after the planets themselves are gone.
Scientists identified the structure through telescope observations. The data revealed a clear ring pattern around the stellar remnant.
The finding helps connect planetary destruction to the debris seen around other dead stars. Similar processes may unfold in our own solar system billions of years from now.
Sun-like stars expand as they age and then shed their outer layers. Any surviving planets would face intense heating and disruption.
