The Search For Planet Nine: Words To Know

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The Search for Planet Nine

By Sarah Millholland, Astronomy Graduate Student, Yale University
KBO orbits
Astronomers around the world are excited by the possibility that there may
exist another planet in the Solar System. This theorized planet, dubbed "Planet
Nine," is thought to be about ten times as large as the Earth. Being this large, Sun (not
there would be no question that it would be considered a ninth planet, rather to scale)
than a dwarf planet like Pluto. If it is so big, why haven't we found it already?
Well, the planet is also thought to be very far away—about 700 times further theorized Planet
Nine orbit
than the Earth is from the Sun. That means it will be especially small and dim
when viewed from the Earth.
The evidence that this as-yet-unseen planet exists is due to mysterious
observations of small bodies in the outskirts of our Solar System. Some of
these distant, comet-like bodies called Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs) have orbits
with abnormally high eccentricities (more oval than circular). Moreover, their
elongated orbits are tightly clustered in space, as shown in the picture to the
right. The chance of such alignment happening randomly is only 0.007% - in
other words, extremely unlikely.
MEET THE SCIENTIST
I am a second-year graduate student at Yale University, where I am working towards
The cause of the KBO clustering was fairly uncertain until January 2016, a PhD in Astronomy. I am fascinated by planets, both planets in our Solar System and
when two Caltech professors, Konstantin Batygin and Mike Brown, presented “exoplanets” that orbit distant stars. I was not interested in astronomy until college,
convincing evidence that a large and distant planet is capable of influencing the but I was always passionate about math, which is a big part of astronomy. Math is key
KBOs to cluster in this way. They used a large set of numerical simulations to understanding the properties of all sorts of distant objects in the Universe things
and showed that the gravitational effects of a large planet will lead other small as diverse as supermassive black holes to mysterious and difficult-to-find planets.
bodies to align their orbits. Therefore, the planet would have an orbit that is
eccentric in a similar way to the KBOs. SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE
Astronomers are now on the hunt to confirm the existence of this theorized Planetary astronomers use a variety of scientific expertise. Mathematics and physics
planet by searching the sky with telescopes. Researchers like myself are also are necessary for understanding gravitational influences of Solar System bodies. The
using further simulations to get better estimates of Planet Nine’s most likely calculations can be difficult to do without a comptuer, so knowledge of computer
orbit. This will help narrow the area of the sky that needs to be searched and programming is useful for setting up simulations. Using telescopes requires hands-
on instrumentation experience and an ability to interpret data. If you are interested
speed up the waiting time before we can see Planet Nine directly.
in astronomy, you will want to pursue classes in math and physics.
W ORDS T O K NOW For Students and Teachers Making Curriculum Connections, see the following:
Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE)
Kuiper Belt Objects: a large collection of small bodies beyond Common Core State Standards (CCSS): Mathematics
the orbit of Neptune that are believed to be a remnant of the • CCSS.Math.Practice.MP1 Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them
Solar System’s formation • CCSS.Math.Practice.MP3 Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others
Orbit: the path that a body makes around the Sun due to the •CCSS.Math.Practice.MP5 Use appropriate tools strategically
Sun’s gravitational attraction Next Generation Science Standards: Scientific and Engineering Practices
• Asking questions and defining problems
Eccentricity: a measure of how elongated a body’s orbit is. Low eccentricity
• Developing and using models
orbits are nearly circular, and high eccentricity orbits are very narrow • Planning and carrying out investigations
ellipses (ovals) • Analyzing and interpreting data
Numerical simulations: a mathematical calculation that is run on a computer • Using Mathematics and computational thinking
to simulate the behavior of a physical system • Constructing explanations and designing solutions
• Engaging in argument from evidence
• Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information
Hyperlinks:
• http://www.findplanetnine.com
• http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/discovering-planet-nine
• https://www.sciencenews.org/article/new-clues-search-planet- • Scientific inquiry is a thoughtful and coordinated attempt to search out, describe, explain and predict natural phenomena
nine?mode=magazine&context=192078 • Scientific inquiry progresses through a continuous process of questioning, data collection, analysis and interpretation
•Scientific inquiry requires the sharing of findings and ideas for critical review by colleagues and other scientists

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Science NIE ACTIVITY Science Matters!

The Search for Planet Nine

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