Astronomers Study Planet With A Death Wish
Astronomers recently discovered a planet that is on a suicidal orbit dangerously close to its parent star, which will eventually lead to its demise.
Writing in the journal Nature, Coel Hellier, a professor of astrophysics at the Keele University in England, reported the discovery of planet WASP-18b, named for the Wide Angle Search for Planets, by which it was discovered.
At ten times the mass of Jupiter, WASP-18b has an orbital period of 0.94 days. Its orbit results in a strong tidal interaction that will eventually lead the planet off course causing it to smash into its parent star, WASP-18.
“It’s causing its own destruction by creating these tides,” said Hellier.
Located about 400 light-years away in the constellation Phoenix, WASP-18b is orbiting about 1.9 million miles from its parent star, which places it on a slow collision course. Hellier said the planet would probably live up to million years before crashing.
Another possibility would be that the planet could be shredded to form a ring system, said Hellier.
But astronomer and co-author Andrew Collier Cameron of the University of St. Andrews said another scenario exists. The third possibility would be that an unknown tidal force could actually extend the lifespan of WASP-18b by as much as 500 million years.
Cameron believes that the closeness between the planet and its star could cause turbulence, which would actually negate the planet’s suicidal orbit shift.
Astronomers expect to learn more about the future of the misguided planet over the next decade.
But Hellier said that is WASP-18b is somehow able to dodge destruction, that would mean “our understanding of orbital dynamics, particularly tidal interactions, needs revision.”
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