【#Tech24H】Stars expand as they age, and planets orbiting too closely will be engulfed by them. This has long been the consensus in astronomy, yet a recent discovery by Chinese astronomers upends this view. Recently, Yunnan University announced the discovery of three exoplanets that should have been consumed by their host stars but survived. These three surviving planets continue to orbit their original host stars and have not migrated to other stars. After going through violent expansion in the red giant phase, the outer layers of their host stars contracted again, entering the red clump evolutionary stage marked by core helium burning. As a result, the planets are still situated within their original stellar systems. It remains unknown whether the three planets can survive if these stars expand once more. Still, their survival through the stars’ red-giant expansion event has challenged conventional astronomical understanding.