Is There A Ninth Planet?

[Graeme]

Case made for 'ninth planet'

 

While the idea of a ninth planet (after Pluto was so cruelly demoted) has been around for awhile. The evidence at the moment is still only circumstantial, but I seem to recall the the existence of Pluto was first inferred from gravitational data. It's plausible that the same could apply here.

[Bill W]

With an orbit that takes 200,000 years, it's fairly safe to see it has never been seen by human eyes before, but does it mean it hasn't created havoc at other times?  If it does exist, could it have been responsible in some way for any of the mass extinctions scenarios?  Could its gravitational force have pulled asteroids out of orbit from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, or the Kuiper Belt at the edge of our solar system, and caused them to strike the earth?  I'm sure there are other possibilities as well, so it will give us a lot to think about if it is truly out there.  

[skinnydragon]

An interesting article.

It makes a couple pretty persuasive points.

Of course, we'll need a visual verification. But with an actual area to search, it could be sooner than we might otherwise expect.

 

Thanks for highlighting this Graeme!

[JamesSavik]

According to the scientists who study the orbital mechanics of planets, comets and asteroids of the outer solar system, there is a large unaccounted for mass somewhere out there. 

 

Some think it can be accounted for by raising the mass of asteroids and Kuiper belt objects but, a big, fat icy planet out there in the dark would also account for the missing mass.

 

It would also have to be a very long way out there. Past the apogee of Pluto eccentric orbit would just be a starting point.

[Drew Espinosa]

I heard about this! This would be so cool to have a Tenth planet (Yep, I still count Pluto as the Ninth )

 

Oh, and this video shows a scale model of our solar system, just imagine how much larger it'd have to be to include this possible planet

 

 

[W_L]

I heard about this! This would be so cool to have a Tenth planet (Yep, I still count Pluto as the Ninth )

 

Oh, and this video shows a scale model of our solar system, just imagine how much larger it'd have to be to include this possible planet

 

 

 

Drew, if they find a tenth planet, you need to rename yourself Pluto

 

It would be cool if we can add another big planet to our solar system.

 

It's probably too far out to have any type of life or even potential colonization value, but I'd love getting naming rights.

 

Being so cold and dark, I'd call it Hecate, just to follow the Greek/Roman theme.

[JamesSavik]

 

Being so cold and dark, I'd call it Hecate, just to follow the Greek/Roman theme.

 

 

That's an easy one. Styx   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Styx

[Graeme]

With an orbit that takes 200,000 years, it's fairly safe to see it has never been seen by human eyes before, but does it mean it hasn't created havoc at other times?  If it does exist, could it have been responsible in some way for any of the mass extinctions scenarios?  Could its gravitational force have pulled asteroids out of orbit from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, or the Kuiper Belt at the edge of our solar system, and caused them to strike the earth?  I'm sure there are other possibilities as well, so it will give us a lot to think about if it is truly out there.  

Kuniper belt and the Oort cloud, yes, asteroid belt, no. The calculated orbit keeps it outside of Neptune's orbit at all times. There's no chance it'll have an impact on the asteroid belt.