Latest news with #sednoid
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
New object flying in our solar system? ASU explains
SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) — Angelo State University's (ASU) Department of Physics and Geosciences explains the new object in our solar system that was announced on July 15 and designated as sednoid 2023 KQ14, nicknamed 'Ammonite.' After the news broke, CVHP reached out to the ASU's Department of Physics & Geosciences to find out more information about the sednoid designated as 2023 KQ14. What is a sednoid? According to Kenneth Carrell, the Planetarium Director at ASU, the 'sednoid' designation is given to objects with some characteristics similar to a Neptunian object and a potential dwarf planet called Sedna. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has specific definitions for a 'planet' and a 'dwarf planet' and there are currently only five officially recognized dwarf planets. 'Future observations may result in more objects getting moved into that category, including potentially Sedna,' said Carrell. How 2023 KQ14 was found? Carrell told the publication that the discovery of this object was made using the Subaru Telescope which located in Hawaii. This telescope has a diameter of just over 8 meters and is in the top 10 largest telescopes currently in use. 'Interestingly, although this object was 'discovered' recently by the team using the Subaru Telescope, they used archival images from surveys as far back as 2014 to get a better idea of the orbit of the object (they discuss these 'precoveries' in the Methods section of the Nature article),' said Carrell. He then explained that there are surveys and telescopes being dedicated to discoveries like this, so discovering objects like 2023 KQ14 may be much more common in the near future. 'So, this object could have been discovered years ago if people knew where to look for it,' said Carrell. More Facts about 2023 KQ14 Carrell said 2023 KQ14 is an object in our Solar System and described it as a Trans-Neptunian object on a highly elliptical orbit. A trans-Neptunian object is a celestial body that orbits the Sun at a greater average distance than Neptune. He said 2023 KQ14's perihelion, or closest approach to the Sun, is almost 70 times farther from the Sun than Earth, and more than twice as far as Neptune, the most distant planet in our Solar System. In contrast, its aphelion, or farthest distance from the Sun, is more than 400 times the Earth-Sun distance, placing it well beyond the heliopause, the widely recognized boundary between the Solar System and interstellar space. He also said that 2023 KQ14 is not possible to see with your unaided eye or with amateur telescopes. The apparent magnitude of the object is just over 25, which is more than 50 million times fainter than your eye can detect in the darkest of conditions. He also added that observing objects this faint requires the largest ground-based telescopes or space telescopes. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Astronomers discover a cosmic 'fossil' at the edge of our solar system. Is this bad news for 'Planet 9'?
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Astronomers have discovered a massive new solar system body located beyond the orbit of Pluto. The weird elongated orbit of the object suggests that if "Planet Nine" exists, it is much further from the sun than thought, or it has been ejected from our planetary system altogether. The strange orbit of the object, designated 2023 KQ14 and nicknamed "Ammonite," classifies it as a "sednoid." Sednoids are bodies beyond the orbit of the ice giant Neptune, known as trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs), characterized by a highly eccentric (non-circular) orbit and a distant closest approach to the sun or "perihelion." The closest distance that 2023 KQ14 ever comes to our star is equivalent to 71 times the distance between Earth and the sun. The sednoid is estimated to be between 136 and 236 miles (220 and 380 kilometers) wide. That makes it 45 times wider than the height of Mount Everest. This is just the fourth known sednoid, and its orbit is currently different from that of its siblings, though it seems to have been stable for 4.5 billion years. However, the team behind the discovery, made using Subaru Telescope as part of the Formation of the Outer Solar System: An Icy Legacy (FOSSIL) survey, thinks that all four sednoids were on similar orbits around 4.2 billion years ago. That implies something dramatic happened out at the edge of the solar system around 400 million years after its birth. Not only does the fact that 2023 KQ14 now follows a unique orbit suggest that the outer solar system is more complex and varied than previously thought, but it also places limits on a hypothetical "Planet Nine" theorized to lurk at the edge of the solar system. "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," team leader Yukun Huang of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan said in a statement. "It is possible that a planet once existed in the solar system but was later ejected, causing the unusual orbits we see today." Hello 2023 KQ14. Goodbye Planet Nine? 2023 KQ14 was first spotted in the wide field of view of the Subaru Telescope, located on Hawaii's Mauna Kea volcano, in observations collected during March, May, and August 2023. The sednoid was confirmed using the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope during follow-up observations performed in July 2024. This data was combined with archival data from other observatories, allowing astronomers to reconstruct the orbit of 2023 KQ14 over the past 19 years. But this is a celestial body that likely formed as the planets of the solar system were taking shape around the infant sun around 4.6 billion years ago. Thus, astronomers were keen to retell the story of its orbit for much longer than two decades. To do this, Huang and their FOSSIL team colleagues turned to the computer cluster operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan to perform complex numerical simulations. This revealed the orbital stability of 2023 KQ14 for 4.5 billion years and the implications of that steady orbit. "2023 KQ14 was found in a region far away where Neptune's gravity has little influence," team member and planetary scientist Fumi Yoshida 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. "Understanding the orbital evolution and physical properties of these unique, distant objects is crucial for comprehending the full history of the solar system." Related Stories: — New kind of pulsar may explain how mysterious 'black widow' systems evolve — Hear 'black widow' pulsar's song as it destroys companion —Astronomers discover origins of mysterious double hot Jupiter exoplanets: 'It is a dance of sorts' Yoshida added that, at present, the Subaru Telescope is one of the only telescopes on Earth capable of making a discovery like that of 2023 KQ14."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 concluded. The team's research was published on Monday (July 14), in the journal Nature Astronomy.
Forbes
15-07-2025
- Science
- Forbes
Meet ‘Ammonite' — A New World Just Found In The Solar System
Artist rendering of a ninth planet in the solar system beyond Pluto. (Illustration by Tobias ... More Roetsch/Future Publishing via Getty Images) An object has been discovered orbiting the sun far beyond Pluto, calling into question theories about a possible Planet Nine in the solar system. The object, for now, designated 2023 KQ14 and nicknamed "Ammonite," was found by astronomers in Japan using its Subaru Telescope in Hawaii. Announced in a paper published today in Nature Astronomy, the object is not a planet but a sednoid. It's only the fourth sednoid ever discovered. Ammonite 2023 KQ14: What is A Sednoid? A sednoid is an object beyond the orbit of Neptune that has a highly eccentric orbit, similar to that of the dwarf planet Sedna, one of the most distant objects in the solar system known to astronomers. Astronomers use the distance between the Earth and the sun — one astronomical unit or au — to measure distance in the solar system. Sedna gets as close to the sun as about 76 au but as far away as 900 au on its elliptical orbit. 2023 KQ14 gets as close as 66 au from the sun and as far away as 252 au. The orbit of 2023 KQ14 (in red) compared to the orbits of the other three sednoids (in white). 2023 ... More KQ14was discovered near its perihelion at a distance of 71 astronomical units (71 times the average distance between the Sun and Earth). The yellow point indicates its current position. 2023 KQ14 And The 'Planet Nine' Hypothesis There has been a lot of attention among astronomers on Planet Nine in recent months. In May, scientists in Taiwan looking for a ninth planet in the solar system found hints in archive images. In June, a study by Rice University and the Planetary Science Institute put a number on the chances that a ninth planet exists — 40%. The reason a ninth planet may exist is an unusual clustering of minor bodies in the Kuiper Belt — the outer solar system. Six objects — Sedna, 2012 VP113, 2004 VN112, 2010 GB174, 2013 RF98 and 2007 TG422 — all have highly elongated yet similarly oriented orbits. They appear to have been "herded" by the gravitational influence of a planet. At a distance of over 8 billion miles (13 billion kilometres), Sedna is so far away it is reduced to ... More one picture element (pixel) in this image taken in high-resolution mode with Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys. Why 2023 KQ14 Might 'Kill' Planet Nine The discovery of 2023 KQ14 may dent that theory because it follows an orbit different from the other sednoids. '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 Dr. Yukun Huang of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, who conducted simulations of the orbit in a press release. "It is possible that a planet once existed in the Solar System but was later ejected, causing the unusual orbits we see today.' If a "Planet Nine" does exist, it likely orbits even farther from the sun than supposed. Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
