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SCIENCEWednesday 27 January 2016
Scientists: Good evidence for 9th planet in solar system
MARCIA DUNN rather somebody find it against Pluto’s planetary Batygin said, referring to they noted, if the planet is
AP Aerospace Writer sooner, than me find it lat- status in 2006. (It’s now of- Neptune’s discovery as relatively closer to us in its
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. er,” astronomer Mike Brown ficially considered a dwarf Planet 8. The two shaped swing around the sun. It’s
(AP) — Scientists reported told The Associated Press. planet.) their prediction on the fact an estimated 20 billion to
recently they finally have “I want to see it. I want to His colleague in this latest that six objects in the icy 100 billion miles from us.
“good evidence” for Plan- see what it looks like. I want Planet 9 report, also from Kuiper Belt, or Twilight Zone The Caltech researchers
et X, a true ninth planet on on the far reaches of the prefer calling it Planet 9,
the fringes of our solar sys- California Institute of Technology astronomer Michael Brown solar system, appear to versus the historical term
tem. points to a yellow dot simulating Planet 9 on a computer video be influenced by only one Planet X. The latter smacks
The gas giant is thought to simulation view of Planet 9 in the solar system at the CalTech thing: a real planet. of “aliens and the imminent
be almost as big as Nep- USGS Media center in Pasadena, Calif. Brown actually discovered destruction of the Earth,”
tune and orbiting billions one of these six objects according to Brown.
of miles beyond Neptune’s (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) more than a decade ago, The orb — believed to be
path — distant enough to Sedna, a large minor plan- 10 times more massive than
take 10,000 to 20,000 years to understand where it is, Caltech in Pasadena, is et way out there on the so- Earth and 5,000 times more
to circle the sun. and I think this will help.” planetary scientist Konstan- lar system frontier. massive than dwarf Pluto
This Planet 9, as the two Once it’s detected, Brown tin Batygin. “This is a prediction. What — may well have rings and
California Institute of Tech- insists there will be no Plu- “For the first time in more we have found is a gravita- moons.
nology researchers call it, to-style planetary debate. than 150 years, there’s tional signature of Planet 9 The last real planet to be
hasn’t been spotted yet. Brown ought to know; he’s good evidence that the lurking in the outskirts of the discovered in our solar sys-
They base their findings on the so-called Pluto killer who planetary census of the so- solar system,’ Batygin said. tem was Neptune in 1846.
mathematical and com- helped lead the charge lar system is incomplete,” “We have not found the Pluto, discovered in 1930,
puter modeling, and an- object itself,” he stressed, was once the 9th planet
ticipate its discovery via adding that the actual dis- but is now considered a
telescope within five years covery when it happens will dwarf planet in the Kui-
or less. be “era-defining.” per Belt. It was visited by
The two reported on their Added Brown: “We have Earth for the first time last
research Wednesday in the felt a great disturbance in July; NASA’s New Horizons
Astronomical Journal be- the force.” spacecraft accomplished
cause they want people to Depending on where this the first-ever flyby.
help them look for it. Planet 9 is in its egg-shaped The spacecraft, unfortu-
“We could have stayed orbit, a space telescope nately, is in the opposite
quiet and quietly spent may be needed to confirm direction of Planet 9, ac-
the next five years search- its presence, the research- cording to the researchers,
ing the skies ourselves and ers said. Or good backyard and thus unable to help in
hoping to find it. But I would telescopes may spot it, its detection.q
