All articles tagged with #red giant
A new study using improved models of tidal dissipation and solar mass loss suggests Earth may survive the Sun's expansion into a red giant, though outcomes remain uncertain; Mercury and Venus face destruction, Mars could migrate outward, and the outer planets’ futures vary as the Sun evolves.
New research suggests Earth could dodge engulfment by the Sun’s red-giant stage if the Sun loses mass quickly enough, causing Earth to drift to a wider orbit around a future white-dwarf Sun; however, life would still be impossible due to increased brightness and heat long before that final phase, with Mercury and Venus assuredly doomed and Mars potentially surviving in a wider orbit.
New stellar-evolution models suggest Earth could survive the Sun's expansion into a red giant, depending on whether tidal forces pulling Earth inward or mass loss from the Sun's outer layers dominates. If tides prevail, Earth is engulfed; if mass loss dominates, Earth escapes to a wider orbit. Observations of the nearby dying star L2 Puppis support potential survival for Earth, while Mercury and Venus are likely doomed. Future observations, including ESA's PLATO mission, may provide a clearer answer.
New research suggests Sun-like stars don’t simply fade away as they die; during the red-giant phase they eject plasma in asymmetric bursts that give the star tiny opposite-direction kicks. Over hundreds of thousands of years this creates a random-walk movement, with a Sun-like star experiencing thousands of such kicks and moving at a few thousand kilometers per hour. While the effect is subtle, it could help push the Sun’s outer layers to around Mars’ orbit, engulfing the inner planets in about five billion years, and it can also disrupt wide binary systems. In rarer cases, kicks might propel a star toward a companion, causing a collision. The findings from Caltech’s Jim Fuller (and colleagues) were presented at the American Astronomical Society meeting and submitted for publication.
Astronomers say the 3,000-light-year binary system T Coronae Borealis could erupt as a nova soon. The red giant–white dwarf pair accretes gas until a thermonuclear runaway brightens the system to naked-eye visibility for about two days; predictions for 2024 missed the mark due to uncertainties in the accretion rate, but the eruption is considered imminent by some researchers. The last outburst was in 1946, and observers continue to monitor the system for a potential event in the coming months to years.
The sun will last another 5 billion years before expanding into a red giant, potentially engulfing inner planets like Mercury and Venus, and eventually shrinking into a white dwarf, leading to the eventual end of the solar system as we know it, although some celestial objects may continue orbiting the remnants of the sun.
The article explores the potential habitability of Europa when the Sun becomes a red giant in about 12 billion years, suggesting that Europa could develop a tenuous water vapor atmosphere and possibly support life during this phase, while also discussing the broader implications for planetary systems and exoplanets around aging stars.
Scientists have discovered an Earth-like planet orbiting a white dwarf star 4,000 light years away, suggesting that Earth might survive the Sun's red giant phase by migrating to a more distant orbit. This finding, based on observations of the KMT-2020-BLG-0414 system, supports the theory that as the Sun expands, its decreasing mass could push planets outward, potentially saving Earth from destruction. However, Earth's habitability is limited, as its oceans are expected to vaporize due to a runaway greenhouse effect long before the Sun becomes a red giant.
NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has discovered an unusual exoplanet named Phoenix, which has managed to retain its atmosphere despite being bombarded by radiation from its red giant parent star. This hot Neptune, located 1,800 light-years away, is smaller, older, and hotter than expected, challenging current understanding of planetary evolution. The findings could provide insights into the future of Earth's atmosphere as our sun undergoes a similar transformation.
A nova explosion of the binary star system T Coronae Borealis, first potentially recorded in 1217, is expected to occur soon. This rare event, caused by a thermonuclear reaction on a white dwarf star, happens approximately every 80 years. Historical observations in 1866 and 1946, along with a recent pre-eruption dip, suggest the next eruption could happen between now and September 2024.
A study of white dwarf stars suggests that even if the Earth survives the Sun's red giant phase, it may one day be torn apart by the solar corpse due to the intense gravitational field around white dwarfs. Observations of three white dwarfs show changes in brightness attributed to objects being devoured, releasing bursts of dust. The study indicates that a few percent of white dwarfs are disintegrating debris at any time, suggesting it is a common process. If the Earth survives, it will face the risk of being torn apart during the white dwarf stage, making its chances of evading the fate uncertain.
The distant stellar system T Coronae Borealis (T CrB) is expected to explode for the first time since 1946, briefly shining brighter than the North Star Polaris, due to a recurring nova event caused by a white dwarf stripping the atmosphere of a red giant in a binary system. This rare event, expected between February and September 2024, will create a new star visible in the night sky, providing a unique opportunity for stargazers and offering insights into astrophysics and cosmology.
In about 5 billion years, the Sun will transform into a red giant, expanding and ultimately leading to the destruction of the solar system. The inner planets, including Mercury and Venus, will be swallowed by the Sun's expansion, while Earth's fate is uncertain. The outer planets will also be affected, with the possibility of Saturn's moon Titan becoming temperate. Eventually, the Sun will expel its outer layers, leaving behind a planetary nebula and removing the outermost planets from its orbit.
The star system T Coronae Borealis, located 3,000 light-years away, is set to undergo a nova outburst between February and September 2024, making it visible to the naked eye as bright as the North Star. This rare event, occurring approximately every 80 years, is the result of a thermonuclear reaction within a binary star system involving a white dwarf and a red giant, offering a unique opportunity for skywatchers to witness a once-in-a-lifetime celestial event in the constellation Corona Borealis.
In about 7-8 billion years, the Sun will evolve into a red giant, engulfing Mercury and Venus, and potentially the Earth, before shedding its outer layers and becoming a white dwarf. The inner planets and their atmospheres will be destroyed, while the remaining planets and asteroid cores may persist. Ultimately, only a few planets may survive in some form, orbiting the white dwarf Sun, with many unknowns about their fate in the far future.