Unusual 'Phoenix' Exoplanet , Challenges Our Current Understanding of , Planetary Evolution.<br />'Newsweek' reports that astronomers have discovered a <br />strange exoplanet that has been able to withstand intense <br />radiation from a giant red star and retain its atmosphere.<br />According to researchers at John Hopkins University, the <br />rare planet should have been stripped down to the rock by <br />the constant bombardment of radiation from its host star.<br />Instead, the unusual exoplanet developed <br />a puffy, less-dense atmosphere instead.<br />Astronomers nicknamed the planet <br />"Phoenix" due to its ability to survive <br />and adapt to extreme environments. .<br />'Newsweek' notes that our own Sun is expected to <br />turn into a red giant in about five billion years, as it <br />enters into the final stages of a star's life cycle.<br />When this happens, the sun will <br />expand and engulf the Earth. .<br />Current understanding of the <br />future evolution of the Earth's <br />atmosphere suggests that when <br />the sun evolves into a red giant, <br />it will strip most, or all, of the <br />planet's atmosphere just before <br />finally engulfing the planet whole, Sam Grunblatt, Astrophysicist at <br />Johns Hopkins University, via 'Newsweek'.<br />However, the new study suggests that Earth's <br />atmosphere may be able to withstand this event, <br />adapting to the extreme environment over time. .<br />Earth may survive until, <br />and even beyond, the start of <br />planet engulfment, and may <br />also puff up in the process. , Sam Grunblatt, Astrophysicist at <br />Johns Hopkins University, via 'Newsweek'.<br />This also suggests that the timing of <br />other stages of Earth's atmospheric <br />evolution may happen later than <br />expected, or in a different sequence <br />than models currently predict, <br />which may have large implications for <br />the longevity of life on Earth and beyond, Sam Grunblatt, Astrophysicist at <br />Johns Hopkins University, via 'Newsweek'