A Stark Forecast: Celestial Chaos Predicted for Mercury, Venus and Earth as Sun Runs Out of Energy”.

A recent study in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society has made a dire prediction for Mercury, Venus, and Earth. According to the study, these planets are expected to be crushed and engulfed by the sun as it runs out of energy. The researchers behind the study were an international team of astrophysicists who made predictions about our planetary system’s future when the sun evolves into a white dwarf.

The study suggests that as the sun exhausts its hydrogen fuel, it will expand and become a red giant before eventually collapsing into a white dwarf. This transformation is likely to have catastrophic consequences for our solar system. While Earth may not escape the sun’s fate, some surviving objects in the system, like Mars and the gas giants, could continue to orbit the white dwarf.

Professor Boris Gaensicke from the University of Warwick warns that if Earth were to be engulfed by the sun, it would lose its atmosphere and oceans, rendering it uninhabitable. The study also suggests that smaller asteroids and moons could be pulverized into dust before falling into the white dwarf, leading to their destruction.

The researchers studied three different white dwarfs and found that planetary bodies in proximity to these stars behave violently and chaotically. The transits caused by asteroids, moons, and planets passing near white dwarfs were found to be unpredictable and disorderly, unlike regular transits caused by planets orbiting stars.

Lead researcher Dr. Amornrat Aungwerojwit notes that previous research had shown that immense gravity can tear apart small planetary bodies that come close to white dwarfs. These bodies are eventually reduced to dust and consumed by them. Additionally, he highlights how rapidly evolving environments around white dwarfs can lead to unpredictable changes in brightness and behavior.

Overall, this study sheds light on how violent fate awaits some celestial bodies in our solar system when the sun transforms into a white dwarf. While Earth’s destiny remains uncertain, this research indicates that our planetary system will face tumultuous change before finding peace once again.