Potential discovery of new dwarf planet adds wrinkle to Planet Nine theory
The scientists announced in a news release that they have found a trans-Neptune Object(TNO), code-named 2017OF201, located past the icy and desolate region of the Kuplier Belt.
The TNO, which are described as minor planets that orbit the sun at a greater distance than Neptune, were found on the edge of our solar system.
While there are plenty of other TNOs in the solar system, what makes 2017OF201 special is its large size and extreme orbit.
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One of the team leads, Sihao Cheng, along with Jiaxuan Li and Eritas Yang from Princeton University, made the discovery.
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The team used advanced computational methods to identify the object's distinctive trajectory pattern in the sky.
"The object's aphelion — the farthest point on the orbit from the Sun — is more than 1600 times that of the Earth's orbit," Cheng said in the release. "Meanwhile, its perihelion — the closest point on its orbit to the Sun — is 44.5 times that of the Earth's orbit, similar to Pluto's orbit."
2017OF201 takes about 25,000 years to orbit the sun, making Yang suggest that "It must have experienced close encounters with a giant planet, causing it to be ejected to a wide orbit."
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Cheng also added that there may have been more than one step in its migration.
"It's possible that this object was first ejected to the Oort cloud, the most distant region in our solar system, which is home to many comets, and then sent back," Cheng said.
This discovery has significant implications for the current understanding of the layout of our outer solar system.
According to NASA, California Institute of Technology (Caltech) astronomers Konstantin Batygin and Mike Brown in January 2016 announced research that provided evidence for a planet about 1.5 times the size of Earth in the outer solar system.
However, the existence of Planet X or Planet Nine is strictly theoretical as neither astronomer has actually observed such a planet.
The theory puts the planet at around the same size as Neptune, far past Pluto somewhere near the Kuiper Belt, where 2017OF201 was located.
If it exists, it is theorized to have a mass of up to 10 times as much as Earth's with a distance of up to 30 times further than Neptune to the Sun.
It would take between 10,000 and 20,000 Earth years to make one full orbit around the Sun.
However, the area beyond the Kuiper Belt, where the object is located, had previously been thought to be essentially empty, but the team's discovery suggests that this is not so.
Cheng said in the release that 2017OF201 only has about 1% of its orbit visible to us.
"Even though advances in telescopes have enabled us to explore distant parts of the universe, there is still a great deal to discover about our own solar system," Cheng said.
NASA mentioned that if Planet Nine exists, it could help explain the unique orbits of some smaller objects in the distant Kuiper Belt.
As of now, Planet Nine remains all but a theory, but the existence of this far-off world rests on gravitational patterns in the outer solar system.Original article source: Potential discovery of new dwarf planet adds wrinkle to Planet Nine theory
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Condensed Statements of Operations (Unaudited) (In thousands, except share and per share data) Three months ended June 30, Six months ended June 30, 2025 2024 2025 2024 Operating Expenses: General and administrative $ 1,711 $ 2,246 $ 3,720 $ 4,602 Research and development 3,326 2,844 6,818 5,272 Total operating expenses 5,037 5,090 10,538 9,874 Loss from operations (5,037 ) (5,090 ) (10,538 ) (9,874 ) Other Income and (Expense) Interest income 63 134 80 312 Total other income 63 134 80 312 Loss before provision for income taxes (4,974 ) (4,956 ) (10,458 ) (9,562 ) Income tax provision — — — — Net Loss $ (4,974 ) $ (4,956 ) $ (10,458 ) $ (9,562 ) Net loss per share, basic and diluted $ (0.15 ) $ (0.19 ) $ (0.32 ) $ (0.36 ) Weighted average common shares outstanding, basic and diluted 33,834,950 26,566,832 32,184,025 26,538,863 HEARTBEAM, INC. Condensed Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited) (In thousands) Six months ended June 30, 2025 2024 Cash Flows From Operating Activities Net loss $ (10,458 ) $ (9,562 ) Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities Depreciation 15 — Stock based compensation expense 2,286 2,247 Changes in operating assets and liabilities: Prepaid expenses and other current assets 85 92 Accounts payable and accrued expenses 150 210 Net cash used in operating activities (7,922 ) (7,013 ) Cash Flows From Investing Activities Purchase of property and equipment (102 ) (98 ) Purchase of short-term investments (3,760 ) — Maturities of short-term investments 1,963 — Net cash used in investing activities (1,899 ) (98 ) Cash Flows From Financing Activities Proceeds from sale of equity, net of issuance costs 10,250 — Proceeds from sale of equity under ATM, net of issuance costs 450 76 Proceeds from exercise of stock options — 8 Net cash provided by financing activities 10,700 84 Net increase (decrease) in cash and restricted cash 879 (7,027 ) Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash – Beginning of period 2,433 16,239 Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash – Ending of period $ 3,312 $ 9,212 Reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash: Cash and cash equivalents $ 3,256 $ 9,157 Restricted cash (included in other assets) 56 55 Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash $ 3,312 $ 9,212 Supplemental Disclosures of Cash Flow Information: Purchase of property and equipment in accounts payable $ 27 $ 16 Taxes paid $ — $ — View source version on Contacts Investor Relations Contact: Chris Tyson Executive Vice PresidentMZ North AmericaDirect: 949-491-8235BEAT@ Media Contact: media@ Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
