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Is There an Earth-Like Planet in the Distant Kuiper Belt?
- sfn42 3y agoI don't know, is there?
- Someone 3y agoEarth-sized in mass, maybe, but earth-like? They argue there may be a ∼ 1.5–3 M⊕ object out there, but don’t say anything about its size or surface temperature. At ∼ 200–500 au, chances are it would be mostly ice. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_belt https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_belt: “most Kuiper belt objects are composed largely of frozen volatiles (termed "ices"), such as methane, ammonia, and water”) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_belt#Composition https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_belt#Composition: “The temperature of the belt is only about 50 K” “The densities range from less than 0.4 to 2.6 g/cm³” ⇒ a bit heavier and likely way less dense than earth (at 5.5 g/cm³, the densest object in the solar system. See https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2020/03/31/this-is-why-earth-surprisingly-is-the-densest-object-in-our-solar-system/?sh=1712f0617be6 https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2020/03/31/this...), so likely at least double its diameter, and very cold, so not earth-like. That title is click-bait.
- beardyw 3y agoBetteridge's law https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge%27s_law_of_headlines https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge%27s_law_of_headli...