Inside Planet 9: Mysterious frozen world would be FOUR times bigger than Earth with temperatures that dip to -226 degrees
- Researchers say planet would have iron core surrounded by silicate mantle
- Outside of this may be water-ice layer, and a hydrogen/helium 'envelope'
- The results may explain why Planet 9 hasn't been detected, the team says
A pair of astrophysicists have created a detailed model of Planet 9 to determine the physical properties of the mysterious world, if it really exists.
The two planet-evolution experts in Switzerland have estimated that the planet is a smaller 'ice-giant' with a radius roughly 3.7 times that of Earth.
Their results may explain why Planet 9 hasn't been detected, and the researchers say future telescopes like the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope in Chile could one day confirm or rule out its existence.
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In a simplified explanation, they say the planet would have a central core consisting of iron, which is surrounded by a silicate mantle. Beyond this, the researchers speculate that there may be water-ice layer, which is then surrounded by a hydrogen/helium 'envelope'
HOW THEY FOUND PLANET NINE
Researchers inferred Planet Nine's presence from the peculiar clustering of six previously known objects that orbit beyond Neptune.
They say there's only a 0.007% chance, or about one in 15,000, that the clustering could be a coincidence.
Instead, they say, a planet with the mass of 10 Earths has shepherded the six objects into their strange elliptical orbits, tilted out of the plane of the solar system.
The mysterious world is thought to be gaseous and similar to Uranus or Neptune.
While no conclusive evidence of its existence has emerged so far, a number of researchers have undertaken their own studies on the possible planet, which is also referred to as or Planet X.
After hearing of the possible existence of a ninth planet, professor Christoph Mordasini and Esther Linder from the University of Bern sought answers.
'For me candidate Planet 9 is a close object, although it is about 700 times further away as the distance between the Earth and the Sun,' says Esther Linder, PhD student at the University of Bern, who typically investigates the formation of young exoplanets.
The researchers created a model for Planet 9 based on the assumption that it is a smaller version of Uranus and Neptune.
Planet 9 is thought to be the equivalent of 10 Earth masses, which led the researcher to estimate its radius is 3.7 times that of our own planet.
And, the temperature would be -226 °C, or 47 Kelvin.
'This means that the planet's emission is dominated by the cooling of its core, otherwise the temperature would only be 10 Kelvin,' explains Linder.
'Its intrinsic power is about 1000 times bigger than its absorbed power.'
The researchers constructed a model which shows what they think to be the makeup of Planet 9.
In a simplified explanation, they say the planet would have a central core consisting of iron, which is surrounded by a silicate mantle.
Beyond this, the researchers speculate that there may be water-ice layer, which is then surrounded by a hydrogen/helium 'envelope.'
The team was also able to estimate the evolution of Planet 9's brightness since the formation of the Universe.
The researchers created a model for Planet 9 based on the assumption that it is a smaller version of Uranus and Neptune. Planet 9 is thought to be the equivalent of 10 Earth masses, which led the researcher to estimate its radius is 3.7 times that of our own planet
'With our study candidate Planet 9 is now more than a simple point mass, it takes shape having physical properties,' says Christoph Mordasini.
Due to the believed size of Planet 9, the researchers say Planet 9 could have been missed by telescopes.
The sky surveys performed to date would have had a small chance to find an object below 20 Earth masses, especially if it's at the farthest point of its orbit around the Sun, they explain.
Last month, Professor Mike Brown from Caltech tweeted a photo that shows the plot of a newly discovered eccentric Kuiper Belt Object (KBO). The researcher claims this is 'where Planet Nine says it should be'
And, Nasa's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer may have detected a much larger planet, ewual to 50 or more Earth masses.
'This puts an interesting upper mass limit for the planet,' Linder says.
Moving forward, the team says emerging technologies including the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, which is under construction near Cerro Tololo, Chile, could find Planet 9, or rule out its existence.
According to Christoph Mordasini, 'That is an exciting perspective.'
NASA WARNS IT'S TOO EARLY TO CONFIRM IF PLANET NINE REALLY EXISTS
In January, Nasa warned claims of a new planet lurking in our solar system are premature.
The space agency said the controversial Caltech paper claiming a ninth planet exists beyond Pluto was 'just a prediction'. It called for caution - but pledged 'if it's there, we'll find it.'
In a YouTube video, Jim Green, director of planetary science at Nasa addressed the new findings.
'The January 20 paper in the Astronomical Journal is fueling our interest in planetary exploration,' Green said. 'Stimulating a healthy debate that's part of the scientific process.
'It is not, however, the detection of a new planet. It's too early to say with certainty that there's a so-called 'Planet X' out there.
He pledged Nasa experts would take part in the process to try and find it.
'It's all about starting the process that could lead to an exiting result.
'If Planet X is out there, we'll find it together.
Alan Stern, a planetary scientist at the Southwest Research Institute who is the principal investigator for NASA's New Horizons mission to Pluto and beyond, was also sceptical.
'This is about the fifth or 10th prediction like this. … Not one has panned out,' he said
'If they do find it, it'll be more like Number 19, not Number 9,' he told GeekWire in an email.
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