Could the Death Star* actually destroy a planet? Three astronomy students from the University of Leicester have set out to answer that decades-old question once and for all.

In their paper "A2_8 That’s No Moon", David Boulderstone, Calum Meredith and Simon Clapton found that yes, actually it is. Kind of.

The paper concludes that yes, the Death Star has the capability to destroy planets because its power source, which is as powerful as several main sequence stars, like our sun.

The young scientists who may yet have a future in on-set science advice, said the the Death Star's energy output could do the job, because most main sequence stars generate more energy on their own, let alone the multi-star force that the space station created.

But much like the empire itself, and Darth in particular, it has to pick on those smaller and weaker than they. The paper concludes the Death Star would struggle on very large planets and couldn't destroy stars, though it's a little late in the day for the former inhabitants of Alderaan who were burnt to a crisp on a Vaderish whim.

*not an actual star