Meet Planet Nine

Meet Planet Nine

Credit: Caltech/R. Hurt (IPAC)

Scientists announced the discovery of a potential "Planet Nine" in our solar system on Jan. 20, 2016. See images of this strange giant world in our neighborhood here. THIS IMAGE: An artist's depiction of Planet Nine as envisioned by scientists.

At the Solar System's Edge

At the Solar System's Edge

Credit: Caltech/R. Hurt (IPAC)

The Planet Nine evidence points to a giant planet with the mass of 10 Earths in the deep Kuiper Belt. Its orbit is about 20 times farther from the sun than that of Neptune.

The Discovery Team

The Discovery Team

Credit: Lance Hayashida/Caltech

The evidence for Planet Nine was unveiled by Caltech scientists Mike Brown (at left, a prolific Kuiper Belt object hunter) and Konstantin Batygin. The duo used mathematical models and computer simulations to map out Planet Nine's orbit after spotting a strange alignment in the orbits of six other Kuiper Belt objects.

What We Know

What We Know

Credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics artist

Here's what we know so far about Planet Nine. See the full infographic here.

More Evidence for Planet Nine

More Evidence for Planet Nine

Credit: Caltech/R. Hurt (IPAC)

If a planet 10 times more massive than Earth is orbiting the sun beyond Neptune, it will affect the orbits of nearby objects. Researchers say five known objects fit the predicted orbits (shown here) precisely