The Gemini South Adaptive Optics Imager (GSAOI), run by the NOIRLab of the National Science Foundation, recently produced the first observation of a dying, Sun-like star devouring one of its planets. The findings of these observations, which were just published in Nature, may aid in the understanding of the processes that Sun-like stars go through near the conclusion of their life cycles.Artist rendition of a planet being engulfed by its dying and expanding star. “These observations provide a new perspective on finding and studying the billions of stars in our Milky Way that have already consumed their planets,” said Dr. Ryan Lau, who is an assistant astronomer at NOIRLab.