天文学家发现了一颗距地球约1300光年的类太阳恒星TOI-5882可能吞噬了它的一颗行星[1]。由密歇根大学天文学家Brooke Kotten领导的研究团队通过光谱分析发现，该恒星含有异常高浓度的锂元素，这成为行星被吞没的关键证据[1]。研究人员将TOI-5882与62颗相似恒星进行了对比，确认其锂元素浓度在比较组中至少达到第97百分位[1]。
被吞噬的行星质量估计在地球质量的几倍到海王星质量之间[1]。Kotten指出："行星物质中含有远比恒星多得多的锂，所以如果恒星吞掉一颗行星，就会获得大量锂元素。"[1]研究人员认为，一个质量超过木星20倍的棕矮星可能曾扰乱该行星的轨道，最终导致其坠入恒星[1]。
这项研究由来自美国和智利的14名研究人员完成，论文发表于《天体物理学杂志》2026年第1004卷第2期[1]。科学家还指出，我们的太阳系预计在约50亿年后会经历类似的命运，届时太阳膨胀为红巨星后将吞噬水星、金星，可能还有地球[1]。
Astronomers have discovered evidence that a sun-like star located approximately 1,300 light-years from Earth has consumed one of its own planets, according to research led by Brooke Kotten of the University of Michigan[1]. The star, designated TOI-5882, contains anomalously high concentrations of lithium that distinguish it from similar stars in the cosmos[1]. Through spectroscopic analysis and comparison with 62 comparable stars, the research team confirmed that the star's lithium levels rank at least at the 97th percentile among its peers[1].
The team of 14 researchers from the United States and Chile theorizes that a brown dwarf more than 20 times the mass of Jupiter may have previously disrupted the planetary orbit, causing the world to spiral into the star[1]. The consumed planet is estimated to have possessed a mass ranging from several Earth masses to that of Neptune[1]. Kotten explained the mechanism behind their discovery, stating: "You are what you eat, right? We know that there's much more lithium in planetary material than there is in stars. So if a star eats a planet, it's going to take on a bunch of lithium."[1]
The findings carry implications for our own solar system, as the Sun is projected to undergo a similar fate approximately 5 billion years hence when it expands into a red giant and consumes Mercury and Venus, and potentially Earth[1]. The research has been published in The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 1004, Issue 2, 2026, with the DOI 10.3847/1538-4357/ae71bb[1].