Latest news with #MinorPlanetCenter
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Move over, Pluto: Scientists have discovered a new dwarf planet at the solar system's edge
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Scientists have found evidence of a previously-undetected dwarf planet at the edge of the solar system. The object, dubbed 2017 OF201, follows an extreme, oblong orbit, taking some 25,000 Earth years to circle the sun. The findings, which were confirmed by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center but have not yet been peer reviewed, were published May 21 on the preprint server arXiv. 2017 OF201 is a roughly spherical body about 435 miles (700 kilometers) in diameter, lurking beyond Neptune's orbit. A team of scientists spotted it while poring through archival data from the Blanco telescope in Chile and the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope based in Hawaii. The researchers tracked the object's motion across 19 sets of images spanning seven years. At its closest, the dwarf planet orbits at nearly 45 AU, or 45 times the distance from Earth to the sun — a similar distance as its fellow dwarf planet Pluto. Based on the newfound object's trajectory, the scientists estimate its last close pass to the sun was in 1930, the same year Pluto was discovered. It's now twice as far away and rocketing off even further into space. At its farthest point, 2017 OF201 will be a whopping 1,600 AU before starting its journey back inward. This oblong orbit hints at complex gravitational interactions, both with Neptune and with the pull of the Milky Way's gravity. "There may have been more than one step in its migration," study co-author Sihao Cheng, an astrophysicist at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, said in a statement. "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." Related: Planet Nine: Is the search for this elusive world nearly over? Because it's so difficult to spot solar system objects this far away, it's possible 2017 OF201 isn't the only dwarf planet waiting to be discovered. "2017 OF201 spends only 1% of its orbital time close enough to us to be detectable," Cheng said. "The presence of this single object suggests that there could be another hundred or so other objects with similar orbit and size; they are just too far away to be detectable now." related stories —Astronomers identify first 'good' candidate for controversial Planet Nine deep in our solar system —James Webb telescope spots potential conditions for life on 2 dwarf planets beyond Neptune —'Farfarout' is most distant object in our solar system. But it's not Planet Nine. The newly-discovered object could also challenge theories of Planet 9, a proposed but unobserved large planet orbiting billions of miles beyond Neptune. Some scientists have proposed the influence of Planet 9's gravity to explain the clustered orbits of some trans-Neptunian objects. But 2017 OF201 doesn't fit neatly into this observed pattern, and the researchers suggest that the gravitational pull of Planet 9 — if it exists — would knock 2017 OF201 out of the solar system fairly quickly. Further observations will be needed to better understand these possible interactions, the team wrote in the study. "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.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
House-size asteroid will pass between Earth and moon on May 21
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A newly discovered house-size asteroid is set to make a close, yet harmless approach to Earth on May 21, passing within one-third of the Earth-moon distance. The close approach will happen at approximately 1:30 p.m. ET on May 21 (1730 GMT), at which point the asteroid, designated 2025 KF, will pass a mere 71,700 miles (115,000 km) from Earth, according to NASA. During the pass, the asteroid will be travelling at a speed of 25,880 miles per hour (41,650 kph) relative to Earth. Its trajectory will see it pass closest to our planet's south polar region before continuing its long, looping orbit around the sun. 2025 KF is not currently considered to be a potentially hazardous object. It also poses no risk of impacting the moon, missing Earth's natural satellite by roughly 140,844 miles (226,666 km). TOP TELESCOPE PICK: Want to see the planets of our solar system for yourself? The Celestron NexStar 4SE is ideal for beginners wanting quality, reliable and quick views of celestial objects. For a more in-depth look at our Celestron NexStar 4SE review. The rocky body was discovered on May 19 by astronomers at the MAP project in Chile's Atacama Desert, according to the Minor Planet Center, just a few days ahead of its close approach. Asteroid 2025 KF is estimated to have a diameter ranging between 32 and 75 feet (10 - 23 meters), making it approximately the size of a house. Even if 2025 KF were to hit Earth, its small size means that it would likely burn up in the atmosphere, posing zero threat to those living on our planet, per NASA. NASA has catalogued close to 40,000 near-Earth asteroids since it began watching the skies for potentially hazardous objects back in the summer of 1998, and we know today that close passes with automobile-sized asteroids occur on a yearly basis. RELATED STORIES: — What are asteroids? — US Representatives worry Trump's NASA budget plan will make it harder to track dangerous asteroids — After the Arecibo collapse in 2020, a lone NASA radar dish in the Mojave desert stepped up as a leading asteroid hunter Of that number, around 4,700 are classified as potentially dangerous asteroids, though scientists at the Center for Near Earth Object Studies have said that it's unlikely that any asteroid capable of causing widespread damage to Earth will strike our planet in the next century. It's also worth noting that 2025 KF's rendezvous doesn't even come close to breaking the record for the closest asteroid pass of Earth, which occurred in 2020 when a car-size asteroid passed a mere 1,830 miles (2,950 km) from our planet's surface and survived to tell the tale.
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
New comet spotted: How to see SWAN25F
The Brief A new comet, nicknamed SWAN25F, was given its official designation as C/2025 F2. The comet was co-discovered by Vladimir Bezugly and Michael Mattiazzo. The comet is best viewed looking toward the east-northeastern horizon just before sunrise. Attention sky watchers! A new comet has been officially announced and you might miss your chance to see it before it could potentially get burned up by the sun. Dig deeper The comet, nicknamed SWAN25F, was officially designated as C/2025 F2 by the Minor Planet Center on April 8, according to The backstory SWAN was co-discovered by Vladimir Bezugly from Ukraine and Michael Mattiazzo from Australia. The comet was nicknamed after the SWAN Instrument which was used to discover it. The best way to view the comet is to look toward the east-northeastern horizon just before sunrise. Binoculars or a telescope will improve your chances of seeing it, Earthsky advised. For those who are avid star gazers, look to the star Alpha Andromedae, or Alpheratz, the brightest of the four stars in the Great Square. The comet will pass fairly close to Alpha Andromedae on April 13, 2025. What's next In a few weeks, the comet will make its closest approach to the sun and, if it survives, it could be seen during sunsets beginning in May. The Source Information for this article was gathered from and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory website. This story was reported from Los Angeles.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
There's a new comet in the sky, and it's already visible through binoculars
One of the great things about astronomy is that it's full of surprises, especially when it comes to comets — you just can't predict when a new one might pop up. But when one does appear, it gets both amateur and professional astronomers very excited. And that's why there's a lot of buzz around a recently discovered comet that is now visible through binoculars, if you know where to look. The comet is so new that it doesn't yet have an official designation, which is provided by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center (MPC). For now it goes by the name SWAN25F. It's named in part after the SWAN (Solar Wind Anisotropies) camera on board NASA and the European Space Agency's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft. It should get an official name soon. The comet was discovered by Australian amateur astronomer Michael Mattiazzo, who used SWAN images available to the public. He previously used the same method to discover a comet in 2020. Right now, the SWAN25F can be found in the early morning sky low in the eastern horizon, in the constellation Pegasus. But over the next few weeks, as the comet moves through our solar system, it will rise a little higher in the morning sky. The comet is so new that the MPC is waiting for additional observations to get more information from it, such as its origin. However, Paul Wiegert, a professor at Western University's department of physics and astronomy in London, Ont., said that at the moment, its believed to come from the furthest reaches of our solar system, called the Oort cloud, where hundreds of millions — or even trillions — of icy objects reside. SWAN25F, seen here, was photographed by amateur astronomer Rolando Ligustri using a remote telescope in Utah. (Rolandro Ligustri) The Oort cloud is mind-blowingly far away. The distance from the sun to Earth is roughly 150 million kilometres, and that measurement is called one astronomical unit (AU). The distance from the sun to the Oort cloud is estimated to be anywhere from 2,000 to 5,000 AU. When and how to see it If you'd like to see this ancient relic left over from the formation of our solar system, you need a few things. First, you need to get up early. SWAN25F is currently low on the eastern horizon and visible before sunrise. You can download astronomy apps on your phone that will allow you to search for particular constellations — in this case, Pegasus. Second, you need a pair of binoculars. At the moment, the comet isn't visible to the naked eye. It's currently at magnitude 8. Visually, the naked eye can only see magnitude 6 in dark-sky locations (in astronomy, brightness is on a scale where lower and negative numbers signify brighter objects). (CBC News) Third, you need a bit of luck. SWAN25F reached its closest point to the sun, called perihelion, some time in February. Now, it's heading toward us, which is in part why it's getting brighter. But whether or not that brightness will continue is unknown. Astronomers are hoping it will become visible to the naked eye by the end of the month. "We expect it to get brighter, not because it's necessarily getting more solar heating and being more active and producing more of the gasses that we see, but our geometry relative to it, we're going to get closer to it," Wiegert said. "And all of those details are going to work in its favour. So we're hoping that it's going to get quite a bit brighter over the next month or so." And that luck also extends to having clear skies. If the comet does continue to remain intact and not break apart as some do — though it's passed the most dangerous time for this to happen, when its closest to the sun — it should continue to both brighten in the sky and rise higher in the next three weeks. Amateur astronomer Dan Bartlett imaged SWAN25F from June Lake, Cali., (Dan Bartlett) But be warned: the comet won't look like the photos you see online, or even in this story. Those images are made by shooting multiple photographs through telescopes and combining them together. Instead, what you'll see through your binoculars will be a faint fuzzy patch of light. And while that may not seem very exciting, just think about how far that object has travelled. "A new comet is always exciting. They appear unexpectedly. They're quite beautiful. They do tell us a lot, too, about our solar system, and about how the planets formed," Wiegert said. "So, you know, it's a sort of a beautiful addition to our springtime skies."
CBC
09-04-2025
- Science
- CBC
There's a new comet in the sky, and it's already visible through binoculars
One of the great things about astronomy is that it's full of surprises, especially when it comes to comets — you just can't predict when a new one might pop up. But when one does appear, it gets both amateur and professional astronomers very excited. And that's why there's a lot of buzz around a recently discovered comet that is now visible through binoculars, if you know where to look. The comet is so new that it doesn't yet have an official designation, which is provided by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center (MPC). For now it goes by the name SWAN25F. It's named in part after the SWAN (Solar Wind Anisotropies) camera on board NASA and the European Space Agency's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft. It should get an official name soon. The comet was discovered by Australian amateur astronomer Michael Mattiazzo, who used SWAN images available to the public. He previously used the same method to discover a comet in 2020. Right now, the SWAN25F can be found in the early morning sky low in the eastern horizon, in the constellation Pegasus. But over the next few weeks, as the comet moves through our solar system, it will rise a little higher in the morning sky. The comet is so new that the MPC is waiting for additional observations to get more information from it, such as its origin. However, Paul Wiegert, a professor at Western University's department of physics and astronomy in London, Ont., said that at the moment, its believed to come from the furthest reaches of our solar system, called the Oort cloud, where hundreds of millions — or even trillions — of icy objects reside. The Oort cloud is mind-blowingly far away. The distance from the sun to Earth is roughly 150 million kilometres, and that measurement is called one astronomical unit (AU). The distance from the sun to the Oort cloud is estimated to be anywhere from 2,000 to 5,000 AU. When and how to see it If you'd like to see this ancient relic left over from the formation of our solar system, you need a few things. First, you need to get up early. SWAN25F is currently low on the eastern horizon and visible before sunrise. You can download astronomy apps on your phone that will allow you to search for particular constellations — in this case, Pegasus. Second, you need a pair of binoculars. At the moment, the comet isn't visible to the naked eye. It's currently at magnitude 8. Visually, the naked eye can only see magnitude 6 in dark-sky locations (in astronomy, brightness is on a scale where lower and negative numbers signify brighter objects). Third, you need a bit of luck. SWAN25F reached its closest point to the sun, called perihelion, some time in February. Now, it's heading toward us, which is in part why it's getting brighter. But whether or not that brightness will continue is unknown. Astronomers are hoping it will become visible to the naked eye by the end of the month. "We expect it to get brighter, not because it's necessarily getting more solar heating and being more active and producing more of the gasses that we see, but our geometry relative to it, we're going to get closer to it," Wiegert said. "And all of those details are going to work in its favour. So we're hoping that it's going to get quite a bit brighter over the next month or so." And that luck also extends to having clear skies. If the comet does continue to remain intact and not break apart as some do — though it's passed the most dangerous time for this to happen, when its closest to the sun — it should continue to both brighten in the sky and rise higher in the next three weeks. But be warned: the comet won't look like the photos you see online, or even in this story. Those images are made by shooting multiple photographs through telescopes and combining them together. Instead, what you'll see through your binoculars will be a faint fuzzy patch of light. And while that may not seem very exciting, just think about how far that object has travelled. "A new comet is always exciting. They appear unexpectedly. They're quite beautiful. They do tell us a lot, too, about our solar system, and about how the planets formed," Wiegert said. "So, you know, it's a sort of a beautiful addition to our springtime skies."
