Newly discovered planets survived their star’s expansion

Astronomers report finding the remains of two Earth-sized planets that were engulfed during their star’s red giant phase. Data from NASA’s Kepler space telescope has revealed that the two planets are orbiting a hot B subdwarf star, a state reached late in the star life-cycle after the massive expansion of the red giant phase. The two stars are closer to their star than the Earth is to the Sun. That's close enough that the star's red giant expansion would have engulfed the planets, possibly stripping gaseous giants similar to Jupiter down to the smaller, dense planets that were discovered. This finding raises many questions about planets’ ability to survive red giant expansions and how the planets may have affected the star’s evolution. It also provides a preview of how Earth could be affected when the Sun enters its own red giant phase in several billion years.