How many planets are there in our solar system? Most scientists would say eight, while others would argue that it is nine, including Pluto, which was downgraded by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in 2006 to ‘dwarf planet’.
NASA
What is Planet 9?
There are also others who argue that there is a ninth planet out there in our solar system, beyond Neptune, but is not Pluto.
Often referred to as Planet 9 and Planet X, this unknown planet has fascinated science for a long time, but till now nothing has been found to establish its presence.
This has not stopped science from looking for it, in the hope that one day Planet 9 will be found.
NASA
Where could Planet 9 be?
According to the most popular theory, put forward by researchers Michael Brown and Konstantin Batygin, from the California Institute of Technology, Planet 9 could be somewhere in the Kuiper Belt — a doughnut-shaped region of icy bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune.
According to them, the Kuiper Belt had unusually warped orbits around the sun, which they say can only be the result of a massive planet’s gravitational pull.
ESA
New evidence on Planet 9
Now Bogytin says that he and his team have found yet more evidence that suggests that the planet exists.
“As advancements in observational surveys have sharpened our understanding of the outer solar system’s orbital architecture, however, a series of anomalous patterns that cannot readily be attributed to early dynamical sculpting, have been unveiled,” his new study noted.
Undiscovered massive planet
According to him, these anomalies include the apparent clustering of apsidal lines of long-period trans-Neptunian objects (TNO) orbits, the alignment of their orbital planes, the existence of objects with perihelia extending far beyond Neptune’s gravitational influence, the highly extended distribution of TNO inclinations, and the surprising prevalence of retrograde Centaurs.
“These irregularities hint at the existence of a yet undiscovered massive planet, tentatively named Planet Nine (P9), whose gravitational influence sculpts the outer reaches of trans-Neptunian space,” it said.
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Shambhu Kumar is a science communicator, making complex scientific topics accessible to all. His articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
