Do you remember the news that has been circulating about the possible existence of another world in the solar system - Planet 9? Here at Mega Curioso we have published several articles on the subject, and in them we have explained that scientists have long believed that there may be more members in our neighborhood, especially after some strange anomalies have been identified in the Kuiper Belt, a region of the space that marks the limit of our planetary system.

If Planet 9 does exist - despite strong evidence, it has not been "seen" yet - astronomers believe it is probably 10 times more massive than Earth and orbits 700 AU (AU = astronomical unit) away from Earth. Sun, that is, 700 times the average distance between us and our star. Far away, right? Much! So much so that scientists estimate that Planet 9 would take between 10, 000 and 20, 000 years to complete an orbit around the star-king.

Another!

Well, if you thought it was cool that this faraway big world is out there, get ready, because there is news that there may be a Planet 10 too! According to Patrick Caughill of Futurism, researchers at the University of Arizona have detected more anomalies in the Kuiper Belt - which they say suggests a tenth planet there.

Kuiper Girdle

If you were curious about this anomaly talk, the belt has a number of celestial objects, some larger, some smaller, but which, given their immense distance in the confines of the solar system, do not exert much gravitational influence. about our planet or our neighbors.

However, according to Patrick, thanks to technological advances and astronomical surveys that have been conducted in recent years, the orbital motions of the objects residing in the belt can be monitored and predicted. Thus, when some strange movement is identified, it indicates the possibility that some large star - of which we are not yet aware - is affecting the orbits of belt objects with their gravity.

This is where (possible) Planet 10 comes into play. However, unlike Planet 9, University of Arizona astronomers believe that this new candidate is only 50 AU away, much closer than the other mysterious world, and estimate that it would have similar dimensions to those of Mars. .

It will be?

Astronomers who announced the news are confident that the anomalies indicate the existence of this 10th planet, but, as expected, not everyone agrees with their interpretation of the strange movement. This is because, according to some researchers, the existence of such a close planet could not go unnoticed for so long.

It would be nice to have more neighbors, don't you think?

Still, scientists advocating the existence of our possible neighbor argue that it will be a very unfortunate coincidence if the anomalies are not caused by a planet, and explained that the move strongly suggests that the number 10 is there, waiting to be confirmed. For our part, we will have to wait for astronomers to do more surveys and observations to see if this world really exists. And you, what do you think?

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