Alien Solar System May Exist in Nearby Star Cluster At 150
light-years from Earth, the Hyades cluster is the nearest star
cluster to Earth's solar system and scientists have long
wondered if some of those stars are home to alien planets. Now,
that particular mystery might be solved. Astronomer Ben
Zuckerman, a physics and astronomy professor at UCLA, and his
team have discovered evidence that the atmosphere of a white
dwarf star in the Hyades cluster is "polluted" with rocky
material from pulverized asteroids pulled into orbit around the
dying, super-dense star. The presence of asteroid dust,
Zuckerman said, suggests that larger objects like exoplanets, or
possibly an entire solar system, may also be orbiting the white
dwarf. Measuring the atmosphere Zuckerman told the scientists at
the American Astronomical Society earlier this month that he and
his team found traces of asteroid dust pollution in 50 to 100 of
the white dwarfs they observed. The new discovery is the first
of its kind seen in the Hyades system