Questions for ‘In a first, astronomers spot the aftermath of an exoplanet smashup’
![](jpg/101023_ec_exoplanet_collision_feat-1030x580.jpg)
The collision of two exoplanets appears to have left behind a donut-shaped cloud of vaporized rock and water (illustrated). Such a plume would seem to explain an infrared glow visible to telescopes.
Mark Garlick