CELESTIAL NOTICES
Green Star Found 326 Light-Years Distant; Sodium Blamed for Ghostly Hue
Astronomers report a white dwarf whose atmosphere absorbs orange light, leaving the object glowing an unusual green.
LOW EARTH ORBIT — Astronomers have announced what they describe as the first known green star, a body catalogued as WD J1330+6435 and situated some 326 light-years from Earth, according to a report by T.K. Randall of Unexplained Mysteries, which drew on coverage by Space.com.
The object was originally a white dwarf, the report states, and is said to have acquired its color after accreting material from a nearby planet. Most stars, including most white dwarfs, behave as what research team leader Mark Hollands of the University of Warwick called 'perfect radiators,' their color set almost wholly by temperature.
The present specimen is held to be an exception. Dr. Hollands told Space.com that traces of sodium in its atmosphere absorb the orange portion of the spectrum, leaving behind what he termed a ghostly green glow.
The article adds that white dwarfs, depending on the materials they consume, may also appear pink, orange or blue. Dr. Hollands observed that nobody had previously looked closely into what else might be possible for such stars.
'Imagine standing on a planet and looking up at a green star,' he said, adding that the prospect feels like something out of science fiction. The article's illustration, it should be noted, was generated by artificial intelligence and is not a photograph of the star.