New data clarifies where to look for the mysterious Ninth Planet
Scientists continue their persistent search for the Ninth Planet — a hypothetical object in the outer solar system far beyond the orbit of Pluto. The new study aimed to narrow down the possible locations of Planet Nine, which could help better understand the structure of the Solar System, as well as its formation and evolutionary processes.
Mike Brown, professor of astronomy at the California Institute of Technology and lead author of the study, said: “We continue to actively explore various sites where we believe Planet Nine may be located. Our latest work, using data from Pan-STARRS, covers the largest area of sky to date».
Pan-STARRS — an astronomical system that includes a panoramic survey telescope located at the University of Hawaii. In this study, scientists used data from Data Release 2 (DR2) to refine the possible locations of Planet Nine, building on the results of previous studies.
The team was able to narrow down the number of possible locations for Planet Nine, eliminating approximately 78% of previous possibilities. In addition, they also provided new estimates of the size and orbit of this planet — about 500 AU and 6.6 times larger than Earth.
Regarding further exploration, Brown said: «I think that LSST will most likely help in discovering Planet Nine. When it launches in a year or two, it will quickly cover most of the search space, and if Planet Nine exists, we will find it.
The main goals of LSST will be the exploration of the southern sky and the study of near-Earth asteroids, small planets and other objects of the Solar System, as well as the study of the properties of dark matter, dark energy and the evolution of the Milky Way.
If Planet Nine is discovered, it will be the fifth largest planet in the Solar System and the only one with a mass between Earth and Uranus.
Hypotheses about the existence of Planet Nine arose after the discovery of Neptune in 1846. In 1880, D. Kirkwood published his memoirs, and in 1946, astronomer Clyde Tombaugh, who discovered Pluto in 1930, proposed his hypothesis about Planet Nine. Updated evidence of its existence appeared in 2016 and 2017, the first of which was authored by Mike Brown. This study represents the most comprehensive analysis yet that has narrowed down the possible locations of Planet Nine.
Brown is convinced: «A large body of evidence points to the existence of Planet Nine. Understanding the solar system becomes difficult without taking into account its influence. Planet Nine explains many features associated with the orbits of objects in the outer solar system that would otherwise be inexplicable and each of which would require a separate explanation».