In a first, astronomers spot the afterglow of an exoplanet collision
Two Neptune-sized planets around a remote star may have hit each other and cast an infrared glow
![Illustration showing a donut-shaped cloud of vaporized rock and water in orange and red hues with a large rocky piece of debris in the foreground and a star in the background](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/101023_ec_exoplanet_collision_feat.jpg?fit=1030%2C580&ssl=1)
The collision of two exoplanets may have left behind a donut-shaped cloud of vaporized rock and water (illustrated), which cast an infrared glow visible to telescopes.
Mark Garlick