Are asteroid fragments drifting around a distant white dwarf star?

(Phys.org)--WD 1145+017, a white dwarf star located some 570 light years from the Earth, captured the attention of astronomers last year, when evidence suggested that a rocky object orbiting it was being ripped apart. It was the first discovery of a planetological body transiting a white dwarf. Now, a team of astronomers lead by Saul Rappaport of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), unveils evidence that the mysterious object is an asteroid and its fragments are drifting around this ...