For over 30 year scientists have been hoard grounds of the chilling regularity of aggregated extinctions on Earth . Two researchers now think the most likely culprit is the hypothesize ninth planet of the Solar System , which they dub " Planet X , " although more usually pertain to now as " Planet Nine " .
allot to retired Professor Daniel Whitmire , the yet undiscovered planet could trigger periodical comet exhibitor . The planet ’s orbit would easy turn out , making the planet pass through the Kuiper Belt every 27 million year and unleashing a swarm of comet towards the inner Solar System . The inquiry was published in theMonthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society .
An apparentperiodicity of aggregate extinctionsevery 27 million years was first discovered in 1984 , and it has been shown to date back 500 million years . geologic record also show that the phenomenon is extremely steady with a variation no large than 10 percent .
To explain these recur quenching , several scientist , include Whitmire , have suggest an extraterrestrial beginning . The most famous suggestion was the existence of Nemesis , a ruby ( or brown ) overshadow comrade to the Sun . This idea was push aside as no such star has ever been discover .
Another possible explanation require interactions between the Solar System and the Milky Way . The Sun go vertically across the astronomic plane , and this movement could make vibration in theOort swarm , post cloth speed towards the Sun . But this was only cogitate to occur every 33 million years , inconsistent with the calculate quenching time period every 27 million .
Planet X is the third suggest astronomic model . It was advise by Whitmire and his workfellow John Matese in 1985 , and to give rise the desired comet shower , the model require the creation of the Kuiper Belt and a gap in material about 7.5 billion km ( 4.7 billion miles ) from the Sun . The swath and the gap were name a few years later , but Planet X was n’t , so the supposition remained untried .
However , the more recent discoveries of several large object in both the Kuiper Belt and the Oort cloud has allowed the scientist to easily rectify their theory . These objects have a perihelion ( the tightlipped point to the Sun ) very near to each other , propose the comportment of a large aim more than 10 times the heap of Earth , which is consistent with thehypothesized existenceof Planet Nine , suggest that the object could be one and the same .
“ I ’ve been part of this story for 30 years , ” Whitmire said in astatement . “ If there is ever a last answer I ’d love to indite a book about it . ”
