PG0843plus516

PG0843+516 is a white dwarf star surrounded by planetary remains.

Researchers have identified an abundance of heavier elements like iron, nickel and sulphur in the atmosphere surrounding PG0843+516. These elements are found in the cores of terrestrial planets, having sunk into their interiors during the early stages of planetary formation. Finding them out in the open attests to the destruction of a rocky world.

Of course, being heavier elements, they will be the first to be accreted by their star. In PG0843+516 we see the accretion of such fragments made from the core material of what was once a terrestrial world.