From supergiant to solar-mass star: Study finds HD 179821 less massive than previously thought

A post-asymptotic giant branch (post-AGB) star known as HD 179821 turns out to be significantly less massive than previously thought, according to a new study. Using new data from ESA’s Gaia satellite, astronomers found that HD 179821 is not a supergiant, which was suggested by previous observations, but is rather a solar-mass star. The finding is presented in a paper published January 28 on arXiv.org.