Planet Nine or A Massive Disk? 

Researchers have claimed that our hidden outer solar system contains some unseen giant planetary body. After years of research and experimentation, our local solar system has grown widely with some amazing discoveries. The Earth is one of the rocky inner planets. Following two gas giants, two ice giants, the belt of asteroids and a second belt of tiny icy bodies. 

The astronomers, after examining the darkness beyond the nether regions. They have mastered catching a few glimpses of what may fill the regions after Neptune. What they have seen doesn’t make sense. When researchers claimed to see an unexpected order of planetary bodies or objects. The orbits of distant objects were grouped together. The point of closest approach was a certain line for no reason. In the occurrence of these few events, scientists have observed some invisible entities.  

Researchers have claimed that our outer solar system contains a giant planet that is ten times heavier and greater than Earth’s. Which is known as Planet Nine. The Planet Nine has pushed its smaller neighbours around. A meticulous exploration is in progress for this giant plane. And if it is not found, other ideas will start to overflow. In Scientific American, Madigan and collaborators said, “The huge disk of smaller bodies can have the same effects”. Other scientists and researchers said something different: “It may be a softball-sized blackhole.” If any of their suggestions are true and no large object can be found, the telescope hunt would be a failure. The astronomers then must be patient and more creative.  

The challenge faced by the Planet Nine theory is how a giant planet exists in the outer solar system while explaining the odd orbits of objects. The sun’s gravity decreases along with its light. So, if the huge planet existed there, it would have gotten hit by a passing star. Let’s suppose it formed close to the sun and then moved away; what stopped it? A physicist at the University of Illinois Chicago, James Unwin, stated, “If it’s a planet, it’s a weird place for a planet to be.” Madigan was actually convinced due to her simulation that she may reach the weird and clustered objects. She claimed further after the forming of our solar system. Jupiter and Saturn removed a lot of planetary ruins into long and oval orbits. Which may have formed into an undetected washer-shaped disk behind the realm of Pluto. Some other researchers have assumed that small masses of objects would amount to rounding errors math and modeling-wise. However, Madigan thought the other way around.  

When Madigan digitally operated her solar system model. She realized the fact that at one point in the distant past, the disk may have transformed into a short-lived cone before being the “puffier” disk. When the dust settles in such systems, they display the exact phenomenon of Planet Nine. “You can explain everything that’s been anomalous in the outer solar system”. Madigan responded, “And that’s not something I say”.  

Madigan said that we are at the edge of what is reasonable. She also identified some flaws in the theory. For the disk to entirely replace the Planet Nine requires 20 Earth masses of material. Almost the total amount of remaining debris is predicted to exist.  

Some other crews have also proposed a smaller disk, which will operate by a different mechanism. This object can bear the outer solar system modelling responsibilities with Planet Nine. Making it to shrink the theoretical size of both structures, stated by co-author Andranik Sefilian. A doctoral candidate at Cambridge University. 

Astrophysicists are concluding that something doubtful has occurred in the outer solar system. Some of them are thinking even further. However, it is a perfectly placed planet or some massive disk, maybe a combination of both. Unwin co-authored a publication that stated that the mystery mass could be a tiny black hole left during the formation of the universe. Ancient black holes have never been detected. A survey conducted with circumstantial evidence shows that either wandering planets or black holes of Planet Nine-like mass are roaming in the Milky Way. It’s a crazy idea to capture the previous one, but it’s not unreasonable.  

The difficult job to select from sensible suggestions will be up to the astronomers. Mike Brown is searching for the planetary body that could end this discussion, the prominent researcher of the Planet Nine theory. Going through the astronomical data, he found something interesting while mentioning it on Twitter, but it emerged to be a fake object. But it was something that he introduced to ensure that his search is operational. The Vera C. Rubin Observatory will take its very first images this year. Also, send a conclusive verdict within five years if Brown has not observed anything. The Vera C. Rubin will spot long-distance planetary objects, which are not possible with current telescopes. Madigan wants it to notify Planet Nine or to arrange the objects in the disk’s inner boundary. Moreover, it can discover some new objects, which will eventually lead to the end of the mystery of Planet Nine.  

The telescope observations and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory programs failed to find Planet Nine. Now, the black hole theory by Unwin looks more rational. A theoretical physicist and string theory pioneer, Edward Witten. He published a proof last week depicting extreme methods to discover the invisible. He stated that we sent out a search party. While getting inspired by Breakthrough Starshot, a project aiming to deliver nanoprobes to the nearest star. Witten, with this theory, sends out a group of simple probes in many directions, hoping for one to get past the black hole. The probes were enabled with photon sails, moving at one percent of the speed of light. Reducing the trip to theoretical black hole to around ten years. These probes’ sensitivity will lead to finishing the official map of celestial bodies in the outer solar system.  

This week, the feedback was announced, which identified that when probes leave the shield of the solar wind. The interference of charged particles might conceal the pull of a black hole. Even those who challenge convention now accept that research must first clear critical barriers. A launch infrastructure will cost around half a billion dollars. Furthermore, the advancement in technology of laser and material doesn’t exist.  

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