10/16/2026
Scientists have discovered the first green star in the universe
How wonderful would it be if our sun glowed a spooky green for Halloween?
However, scientists point out that after billions of years, the sun could have acquired a similar green hue. This could only happen if the sun died and began devouring its surrounding planets like a cosmic zombie.
According to a new study, astronomers have discovered that the stellar remnants of stars like the sun, called white dwarfs, can glow in a variety of colors such as green, pink, yellow, and purple as they eat the rocky planets around them.
This confirms once again that the universe is much more colorful than we thought.
🌠The traditional color law of stars changes
Usually, the color of a star is determined by its temperature.
✅ Cool stars - appear orange.
✅ Stars like the Sun - appear white.
✅ The hottest stars - shine in a light blue.
This is similar to how a piece of iron in a factory starts out red, then changes color to orange and white-hot stars.
Previously, scientists thought that white dwarfs also followed this rule exactly. But new research shows that these dead stars can have an incredibly diverse range of colors.
Mark Hollands of the University of Warwick, who led the research team, said:
"Most stars are perfect radiative, so their color is determined entirely by temperature. But it has now been revealed that these extremely dense stars can produce colors in ways we never thought possible."
🌠 White dwarf devours planets like a cosmic zombie
When a star dies and runs out of fuel, its core collapses under its own gravity, creating a white dwarf. The density of a star is a million times that of water, or much higher than the surface of the sun.
In these extremely dense conditions, elements such as carbon, calcium, and sodium interact with the surrounding dense helium plasma, absorbing a wider range of colors of light than normal.
The most surprising thing the researchers found was that these dead stars turned green as they began devouring their surrounding planets or moons like a zombie in a horror movie.
🌠The first green star discovered in history - WD J1330+6435
The cool white dwarf star WD J1330+6435, located about 326 light-years from Earth, is a good example of this. The star is sucking in rocky material from its neighboring planets.
This has enriched its atmosphere with calcium, lithium and sodium, and scientists' computer models show that this process gives the star a green glow.
🌠 What causes this green color?
The sodium in the white dwarf's atmosphere absorbs the orange part of the light spectrum, leaving behind a strange, ghostly green glow.
No other star, living or dead, has ever been officially reported to be green. Accordingly, WD J1330+6435 is the first true green star discovered in the universe
🌠 Stars that shine in other colors
The researchers have made another amazing discovery in addition to the green star. Namely, the star WD J1011+2845, located about 48 light-years from Earth, may be the reddest star ever discovered. The carbon molecules in its interior refract light, giving it this wonderful pink color.
However, not all dead stars glow in unusual colors like this. According to the researchers, only 1 in 30 white dwarf stars have such unusual colors, and the majority of stars still appear as normal white.
The latest research paper has just been published in the scientific journal RAS Techniques and Instruments."
