In a galaxy in South Yorkshire, scientists find evidence of Star Wars-like planets

Researchers including scientists from the University of Sheffield have found evidence of planetary debris surrounding a double sun in a Star Wars-like system. The study, published yesterday in the journal Nature Astronomy, discovered the remains of shattered asteroids orbiting a double sun consisting of a white dwarf star and a brown dwarf star roughly 1,000 light years away in a system called SDSS 1557.

The debris appears to be rocky and suggests that terrestrial planets, such as Tatooine, the home planet of Luke Skywalker in the film series Star Wars, might exist in the system.

Co-author Dr Steven Parsons, from the University of Sheffield, said: “We know of thousands of binaries similar to SDSS 1557 but this is the first time we’ve seen asteroid debris and pollution.”