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Chapter 8: Problem 24

Is there evidence that planets have fallen into their parent stars? Explain.

Short Answer

Expert verified
Yes, there is evidence to suggest that planets have fallen into their parent stars, such as certain stars showing elements in their atmospheres that are usually found on planets and visible examples of planets on a collision course with their parent stars.

Step by step solution

01

Understand the Basics of Planet Formation and Habitation

Planets are bodies that orbit around stars. They are formed from the circular disk of gas and dust that surrounds a young star. Over time, due to various phenomena, they may change their orbit, potentially leading to a collision course with the host star.
02

Consider the Evidence of Planet Consumption

According to scientific research and observations, there are certain indicators that suggest this occurrence. Scientists have identified stars that show elements in their atmospheres that are usually found in higher concentrations in planets. This could indicate that these stars have absorbed planets in the past. For example, the star known as BD+48 740, which is similar to our Sun, has an exaggerated amount of the element lithium. This element is largely destroyed during the evolution of a star, but the high presence of lithium may suggest that a planet has been consumed.
03

Highlight other Indirect Evidence

Moreover, astronomical observation has revealed doomed planets spiraling into their parent stars, such as the planet KELT-16b, which is on a rapidly shrinking orbit and predicted to be swallowed by its parent star in the next million years.
04

Conclude the Findings

In conclusion, while there is no direct evidence of planets falling into their parent stars--as it's hard to witness such event--various indirect evidence suggests that this hypothesis may be true, thereby supporting the idea that planets occasionally fall into their parent stars.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Explain how our current understanding of the formation of the solar system can account for the following characteristics of the solar system: (a) All planetary orbits lie in nearly the same plane. (b) All planetary orbits are nearly circular. (c) The planets orbit the Sun in the same direction in which the Sun itself rotates.

Explain why most of the satellites of Jupiter orbit that planet in the same direction that Jupiter rotates.

What is a chondrule? How do we know they were not formed by the ambient heat of the solar nebula?

What is a planetesimal? How did planetesimals give rise to the terrestrial planets?

Use the Stamy Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\mathrm{TM}}\) program to examine stars that have planets. Select Stars > ExtraSolar Planets in the Favourites menu. In the star map that appears, each circled star has one or more planets. (You can zoom in and zoom out using the buttons at the right side of the toolbar. Click the Info tab at the left of the main window to open the Info pane and open the Other Data panel. Then click on a circled star to learn more about its properties. Note that the information given for each star includes the apparent magnitude, which is a measure of how bright each star appears as seen from Earth. Apparent magnitude uses a "backwards" scale: The greater the value of the apparent magnitude, the dimmer the star. Most of the brighter stars you can see with the naked eye from the Earth have apparent magnitudes between 0 and 1 , while the dimmest star you can see from a dark location has apparent magnitude 6. Are most of the circled stars visible to the naked eye? List at least two stars that are visible, and include their apparent magnitudes.
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