4 ms·
So what happens to planets who orbit a star that dies? It seems like they would be come orphans. That was my first thought. I know next to nothing about the Uni
by FajitaNachos 13y ago
So what happens to planets who orbit a star that dies? It seems like they would be come orphans. That was my first thought. I know next to nothing about the Universe.
- troels 13y agoWhen a star "dies", it goes through some phases, there one of them is that is grows really big. Planets would presumably be consumed in this process. In any case, a star doesn't disappear when it dies. It just ceases burning.
- Daniel_Newby 13y agoSome stars explode with such energy that they evaporate. The thermal motion of the gas exceeds the gravitational binding energy. Any outer planets simply drift off into the cosmos.
- drjesusphd 13y agoSome mass is sloughed off late in a star's life, but the star's core remains behind and this can still be quite massive. If a planet is not consumed by the star in the giant (or supernova) stages, it's orbit would be altered because of the decreased mass of the star.