Sun may have swallowed a super-Earth during formation

New research suggests the Sun may have swallowed a super-Earth during the chaotic early stages of the Solar System's formation approximately 4.6 billion years ago. Scientists are investigating whether the incorporation of a large rocky planet could explain two specific solar anomalies.

First, the Sun is significantly lithium-poor compared to the levels expected in the proto-solar nebula from which it formed. Second, helioseismic measurements indicate that the speed of sound near the bottom of the Sun's convection zone does not align with current astrophysical models.

Professor Mutlu Yildiz of Ege University proposes that the gravitational interactions and material from an engulfed planet could have stirred the Sun's interior, potentially resolving both the lithium deficiency and the discrepancies in sound speed measurements. Researchers are now looking for specific 'fingerprints' or compositional changes within the star that would confirm such a collision occurred.