Latest news with #Canada-France-HawaiiTelescope
18-07-2025
- Science
'Fossil' object dubbed 'Ammonite' discovered on the outskirts of the solar system
Astronomers have discovered a "fossil" body residing on the outskirts of the solar system, according to new research. The object – which goes by the formal designation 2023 KQ14 but is nicknamed 'Ammonite," in an apparent nod to the widely found, ancient fossilized mollusk – was detected by the Subaru Telescope in Hawaii, according to a paper published Tuesday in Nature Astronomy. Ammonite was discovered at its perihelion, which is the point in a celestial body's orbit at which it is closest to the sun, according to the paper. It lies beyond Pluto at a distance of 71 AU, or astronomical units – putting it 71 times the average distance between the sun and Earth, according to the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ), whose astronomers made the discovery. The object was found in a region so far on the solar system's outskirts that gravity from Neptune, the planet farthest away from the sun in our solar system, has little influence on it, Fumi Yoshida, a planetary scientist at the NAOJ and co-author of the paper, said in a statement. Such objects are technically known as sednoids. Ammonite is only the fourth-ever sednoid to be discovered, the researchers said. "The presence of objects with elongated orbits and large perihelion distances in this area implies that something extraordinary occurred during the ancient era when 2023 KQ14 formed," Yoshida said. "Understanding the orbital evolution and physical properties of these unique, distant objects is crucial for comprehending the full history of the solar system." Astronomers first noticed the object several times in 2023 and confirmed its existence with follow-up observations in 2024 by the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope in Hawaii, according to NAOJ. Astronomers were also able to track the object's orbit over 19 years by studying old data from other observatories. Ammonite has maintained a stable orbit for at least 4.5 billion years but its current orbit differs from those of the other known sednoids, according to the paper. The discovery indicates that the outer solar system is more diverse and complex than previously thought, according to NAOJ. In addition, the existence of Ammonite again calls into question the existence of a possible Planet Nine, a long-hypothesized ninth planet in the solar system that some say could explain the orbits of other distant objects through its gravitational influence, should it exist. "The fact that 2023 KQ14's current orbit does not align with those of the other three sednoids lowers the likelihood of the Planet Nine hypothesis," said Yukun Huang, an astronomer at the NAOJ and co-author of the paper. "It is possible that a planet once existed in the solar system but was later ejected, causing the unusual orbits we see today." Ammonite was found as part of the FOSSIL survey project, which stands for the Formation of the Outer Solar System: An Icy Legacy, according to NAOJ. A more classical name will be assigned to the object by the International Astronomical Union at a later date, the researchers said. The Subaru Telescope is among the few telescopes on Earth capable of making such a discovery, according to the researchers. "I would be happy if the FOSSIL team could make many more discoveries like this one and help draw a complete picture of the history of the Solar System," Yoshida said.
Time of India
15-06-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Pluto-like planet discovered: How big is it and how far is it from Earth?
In a significant breakthrough, astronomers have detected a Pluto-like planet situated far beyond the known boundaries of the solar system. Identified as 2017 OF201 , the icy celestial body may represent the largest object discovered in the outer solar system in over a decade, reigniting interest in the unexplored expanses beyond Neptune. Pluto Like Planet With an Extraordinary Orbit Classified as an extreme trans-Neptunian object (TNO), 2017 OF201 is believed to be around 700 kilometers (435 miles) in diameter—about half the size of Pluto. Though smaller than the famous dwarf planet, its location and orbital characteristics have startled researchers. The object's aphelion, or farthest distance from the Sun, is more than 1,600 times Earth's orbital distance, while its perihelion, the nearest point to the Sun, is roughly 44.5 times that of Earth—comparable to Pluto's orbital reach. 'This suggests a highly elliptical and unusual orbit,' noted Dr. Sihao Cheng from the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, which led the discovery, as mentioned in a report by Forbes. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Beckham Swapped Heels. Walked More. Noticed The Difference. dailybuzzreport Try Now Undo The planet takes approximately 25,000 years to complete one revolution around the Sun, hinting at a dramatic cosmic history. A Decade's Largest Solar System Discovery Discovered using a combination of data from the Dark Energy Camera in Chile and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, the celestial body was captured over seven years and 19 different exposures. Astronomers suggest that if the object's size is verified via radio telescopes, it will earn the title of the largest newly discovered planetary body in the outer solar system since the early 2010s. Live Events 2017 OF201 joins a short but significant list of massive TNOs, which includes Eris, Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, and Gonggong. It further challenges previous assumptions about the sparsity of large bodies in the far-flung regions of the solar system. Possibly Ejected from the Oort Cloud According to the researchers, the extreme orbit of 2017 OF201 suggests a tumultuous past. It may have been gravitationally ejected by one of the gas giants early in solar system history, potentially reaching the Oort Cloud—a distant shell believed to host countless icy bodies—before being pulled back inward. 'This is a classic case of a planetary body that didn't just form where it now resides. Its path tells the story of encounters, ejections, and returns,' said Dr. Yifan Yang, a collaborator on the study, as mentioned in a report by Forbes.. Solar System May Host Hundreds More The Kuiper Belt , the donut-shaped region beyond Neptune, was once thought to be relatively empty. However, the discovery of 2017 OF201 raises fresh questions about what lies beyond. 'The fact that 2017 OF201 was detectable while spending just 1% of its orbital period near the inner solar system implies that there could be hundreds of similar-sized objects we simply haven't detected yet,' Dr. Cheng added. A Renewed Push for Outer Solar System Exploration This discovery provides renewed impetus for studying the Pluto-like planet category and the solar system's unexplored boundaries. It may also guide future missions akin to NASA's New Horizons , which flew past Pluto in 2015 before entering deeper Kuiper Belt territory. Astronomers emphasize that while humanity has explored deep space with cutting-edge instruments, the very edges of our own cosmic neighborhood remain largely uncharted territory. FAQs What is 2017 OF201? 2017 OF201 is an icy, Pluto-like celestial body classified as an extreme trans-Neptunian object (TNO). It was recently discovered in the far outer regions of the solar system and could be the largest such object found in over a decade. How big is 2017 OF201? The object is estimated to be around 700 kilometers (435 miles) in diameter, which is approximately half the size of Pluto.
Scientific American
22-05-2025
- Science
- Scientific American
How One Astronomer Helped to Discover Nearly 200 Moons of Saturn
A mere decade ago, astronomers knew of just 62 moons around Saturn. Today the ringed planet boasts a staggering 274 official satellites. That's more than any other world in the solar system—and far too many for most people to keep track of. Astronomer Edward Ashton is no exception, even though he has helped to discover 192 of them—he thinks that's the total, anyway, after pausing to do some mental math. Ashton is now a postdoctoral fellow at the Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics in Taiwan. He fell into hunting for Saturn's moons in 2018, when his then academic adviser suggested the project for his Ph.D. at the University of British Columbia. It has been a fruitful search. Most recently, in March, Ashton and his colleagues announced a batch of 128 newfound Saturnian satellites. Scientific American spoke with Ashton about the science of discovering so many relatively tiny moons—most of them just a few kilometers wide—using vast amounts of data gathered by the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT), located in Hawaii. On supporting science journalism If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today. [ An edited transcript of the interview follows.] How have you found these moons? To detect the moons, we use a technique known as shifting and stacking. We take 44 sequential images of the same patch of sky over a three-hour period because, in that time frame, the moons move relative to the stars at a rate similar to Saturn. If we just stack the images normally, then the moon appears as a streak across the images, and that dilutes the signal of the moon. So what we do is: we shift the images relative to one another at multiple different rates near that of Saturn, and then we basically blink between the different shift rates. If the shift rate is not quite at the rate of the moon, then it's going to be slightly elongated. As you get closer to the rate of the moon, then it slowly combines into a dot. And then, as you get faster than the moon's rate, it expands again. So basically, we look at the images and then quickly blink through the different rates, and you can see the moon coalescing. That's for a single night. But just seeing an object moving at a Saturn-like rate near Saturn doesn't guarantee that it is a moon. It's highly likely that the object is a moon, but that hasn't been confirmed. So what we need to do is track the objects to show that they are in orbit around the planet. To do that, we repeat the [shift and stack] process multiple times over many months and years. Why did this happen now? Did you need new techniques and observatories to do this work? The technique and the technology have been there for a while—the same technique has been used to find moons of Neptune and Uranus. But the sky area around those planets where moons can exist is a lot smaller, so it takes less time to search through the data. One of the reasons why this hadn't been done for Saturn is because it's very time-consuming. Why do those other planets have less space where moons could be than Saturn does? Those planets are less massive, so the stable orbits that moons can have are smaller. I had been wondering if this technique works for other planets, and clearly the answer is yes. But do you think there are other moons that have yet to be found around Saturn or other planets with the method? We did find moon candidates around Saturn that we weren't able to track long enough to be able to confirm them. So if you redo this technique again, you will be able to find more moons around Saturn, but this is a case of diminishing returns. If you use a larger telescope [than the CFHT], then you'd be able to see fainter moons, so you'd be able to find more. At the moment, if you use the same technique for Jupiter, you will be able to find fainter moons. The problem is: the amount of sky that moons of Jupiter can occupy is significantly larger than [the amount of sky that can be occupied by moons of] Saturn, so the method is even more time-consuming for Jupiter. And Jupiter is much brighter than Saturn and the other planets, so there's a lot of scattered light that makes it harder to see the moons. So it's even harder to find satellites around Jupiter, and as you mentioned, other groups have already done this work for Uranus and Neptune. Does that mean we're sort of 'maxed out' on moons until we have better observations? Yeah, you probably have to wait until better technology comes along. Is there something being built or planned right now that could be that 'better technology'? There currently are telescopes that can see deeper [than the CFHT], such as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The problem is: JWST's field of view is very small, so you have to do quite a few observations to be able to cover the required area. But there is a telescope that's set to launch pretty soon, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, that has quite a large field of view. So that'll be a good telescope to use for hunting more moons. What do we know about these new moons? You basically can only get the moons' orbits and approximate sizes. But if you look at the distribution of the orbits, you can understand a bit more about the history of the system. Moons that are sort of clumped together in orbital space are most likely the result of a collision, so you can see what moons come from the same parent object. Is seeing so many moons around Saturn unusual? What's unusual is how many there are. It appears that the planets have more or less equal numbers of the larger moons. But when you get down to the smaller ones that we're discovering, Saturn seems to shoot up in terms of the numbers. So that's quite interesting. This could just be because there was a recent collision within the Saturnian system that produced a large number of fragments. Do you get to name them all? Do you have to name them all? I guess I don't have to. Some of these new moons, they've been linked back to observations by a different group from more than 10 years ago. That's maybe 20 to 30 of them. For the rest, we get full discovery credit, which, I think, means we get the right to name them. But they can't be named just yet; first, they're just given a number when they have a high-precision orbit, and I'm not sure how long that's going to take. Do you have more moon-hunting observations to analyze? No, I'm taking a little break from moons! I've got other projects to work on, relating to trans-Neptunian objects. They're quite far away. They're hard to see. There are some mysteries about them at the moment. It's interesting to understand their structure and how it relates to planet formation.
