JWST Discovers a Potential Giant Planet Orbiting a Dead Star

Star system: EGGR 484 | Distance from the Sun: 59 light years

Using the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have discovered a significant infrared glow around white dwarf star WD 0644+025, an unusually heavy white dwarf located within 25 parsecs of Earth. This excess heat suggests the presence of a giant planet, roughly seven times the mass of Jupiter, orbiting the remains of this dead star. 

While white dwarfs are the final stage of stars like our Sun, this particular star is unique because it shows signs of 'metal pollution', meaning it is actively consuming rocky debris. This discovery is crucial because it shows that large planets can survive the violent death of their parent stars and continue to orbit them even after the star has collapsed into a dense white dwarf.

Scientific study

The MIRI Excess around Degenerates (MEAD) Survey II: A Probable Planet detected via IR Excess around WD 0644+025 (external link)