Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Join communications specialist Beth Johnson for a live interview with astrophysicist Marc Hon (MIT), lead author of a new study revealing one of the most extreme exoplanets ever discovered — a small, rocky world that's literally disintegrating as it orbits its star.
BD+05 4868 b is a Mercury-sized planet just 140 light-years away that’s orbiting so close to its star, it’s roasting at around 1650°C. The heat is intense enough to vaporize the planet’s rocky surface, creating a massive comet-like tail of mineral dust stretching millions of kilometers across space. This rare discovery — only the fourth known disintegrating planet — offers scientists an unprecedented opportunity to study the geology of an alien world, and upcoming JWST observations could even reveal the chemical makeup of its interior.
Press release: https://news.mit.edu/2025/astronomers-discover-planet-thats-rapidly-disintegrating-producing-comet-tail-0422
Paper: iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/adbf21
#Exoplanet #SpaceNews #Astronomy #JWST #TESS #Astrophysics #CometTailPlanet #LiveScienceInterview #Science #Space #MIT
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Join communications specialist Beth Johnson for a live interview with astrophysicist Marc Hon (MIT), lead author of a new study revealing one of the most extreme exoplanets ever discovered — a small, rocky world that's literally disintegrating as it orbits its star.
BD+05 4868 b is a Mercury-sized planet just 140 light-years away that’s orbiting so close to its star, it’s roasting at around 1650°C. The heat is intense enough to vaporize the planet’s rocky surface, creating a massive comet-like tail of mineral dust stretching millions of kilometers across space. This rare discovery — only the fourth known disintegrating planet — offers scientists an unprecedented opportunity to study the geology of an alien world, and upcoming JWST observations could even reveal the chemical makeup of its interior.
Press release: https://news.mit.edu/2025/astronomers-discover-planet-thats-rapidly-disintegrating-producing-comet-tail-0422
Paper: iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/adbf21
#Exoplanet #SpaceNews #Astronomy #JWST #TESS #Astrophysics #CometTailPlanet #LiveScienceInterview #Science #Space #MIT
If you like science, support the SETI Institute! We're a non-profit research institution whose focus is understanding the nature and origins of life in the universe. Donate here: seti.org/donate
Learn more about the SETI Institute and stay up-to-date on awesome science:
- Subscribe to our YouTube channel at youtube.com/c/SETIInstitute
- Watch our streams over on Twitch at twitch.tv/setiinstitute
- Listen to our podcast, Big Picture Science [http://www.bigpicturescience.org](http://www.bigpicturescience.org/)/
- Subscribe to our newsletter seti.org/signup
- Buy merchandise from Chop Shop chopshopstore.com/collections/seti-institute/SETI
Don't forget to like and subscribe! Ring the bell for notifications of when we go live.
🎙️ New to streaming or looking to level up? Check out StreamYard and get $10 discount! 😍 streamyard.com/pal/d/4796881226432512
