Understand
We present spectroscopic observations of the dust- and gas-enshrouded, polluted, single white dwarf star SDSSJ104341.53+085558.2 (hereafter SDSSJ1043+0855).
- Hubble Space Telescope Cosmic Origins Spectrograph far-ultraviolet spectra combined with deep Keck HIRES optical spectroscopy reveal the elements C, O, Mg, Al, Si, P, S, Ca, Fe, and Ni and enable useful limits for Sc, Ti, V, Cr, and Mn in the photosphere of SDSSJ1043+0855.
- From this suite of elements we determine that the parent body being accreted by SDSSJ1043+0855 is similar to the silicate Moon or the outer layers of Earth in that it is rocky and iron-poor.
- Combining this with comparison to other heavily polluted white dwarf stars, we are able to identify the material being accreted by SDSSJ1043+0855 as likely to have come from the outermost layers of a differentiated object.