The universe’s largest diamond isn’t on Earth. BPM 37093 or V886 Centauri is a white dwarf star. White dwarfs are “extinct” or “dead” stars. V886 Centauri is a diamond-shaped planet. White dwarf star’s core is 10-billion-trillion-trillion-carat diamond.
V886 Centauri, 50 light-years away, is in Centaurus. It’s a brightly throbbing light. Observing pulsations helped pinpoint the star’s interior.
Carbon and oxygen make up most of the star’s composition, but scientists detected diamond-like carbon inside. As a white dwarf cools and crystallizes, diamonds form. It’s 4000 km across. Scientists say 90% of V886 Centauri’s mass has solidified. V886 Centauri has been called “Lucy” after the Beatles song. Astronomers say it’s the largest diamond in the cosmos and proves the Solar System’s fate. Our Sun could die in five billion years and become a white dwarf. It may become a diamond-like V886 Centauri.
