{"id":3078,"date":"2016-01-06T21:58:00","date_gmt":"2016-01-06T21:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/198.74.50.173\/2016\/01\/atacama-large-millimetersubmillimeter.html"},"modified":"2017-04-07T03:24:01","modified_gmt":"2017-04-07T03:24:01","slug":"atacama-large-millimetersubmillimeter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextbigfuture.com\/2016\/01\/atacama-large-millimetersubmillimeter.html","title":{"rendered":"Atacama Large Millimeter\/submillimeter Array may have found Super-Earth in our solar system"},"content":{"rendered":"
Astronomers using data from the Atacama Large Millimeter\/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have found a distant object in the direction of Alpha Centauri.<\/a> The object appears to be in the outer region of our solar system, and depending on its distance could be a hypothesized \u201dsuper-Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n Other Evidence of a super earth – There is evidence of a specific planet that is 5000 times larger than Pluto. This other evidence is different from the Atacama telescope work<\/A> <\/p>\n ALMA is capable of precise observations at short microwave wavelengths, typically emitted by cold gas and dust. But objects on the edge of our solar system also emit light in this range, and would be too cool and distant to be observed by infrared telescopes. In 2014, ALMA found a faint object in the direction of Alpha Centauri A and B. The object was again observed in May of this year, this time more clearly the object is most likely part of the solar system, in prograde motion, albeit at a distance too far to be detectable at other wavelengths, It doesn\u2019t seem to be part of the Alpha Centauri system, it must be closer and correspondingly smaller. With just two observations it isn\u2019t possible to determine the object\u2019s orbit, so we can only guess at its distance and size. One possibility (and the one I think most likely) is that it\u2019s an extreme trans-Neptunian object about 100 astronomical units away from the Sun, which is further than Sedna at 86 AU. This would make it the most distant known object in the solar system, but likely smaller than Pluto.<\/p>\n Another possibility (which seems more likely to the object\u2019s discoverers) is that it is about 300 AU away and about 1.5 times the size of Earth, making it the first \u201csuper-Earth\u201d found in our solar system. Observations of trans-Neptunian objects have led to some speculation that one or two super-Earth\u2019s could lurk in the outer solar system, so it\u2019s not out of the question. There\u2019s reason to be cautious of this idea, however, because of its location. Alpha Centauri is about 42 degrees away from the ecliptic. Most large solar system lay within a few degrees of the ecliptic, and even Sedna\u2019s orbit is only inclined about 12 degrees from it.<\/p>\n A third possibility is that the object is a cool brown dwarf about 20,000 AU away. Such an object should also be visible in the infrared, so there would still be the question as to why it wasn\u2019t discovered by earlier infrared sky surveys. Its proximity to Alpha Centauri would seem to make such an object easy to find.<\/p>\n The only way to know for sure is to gather more observations. <\/p>\n It will take a lot of work to learn more about the new ALMA objects, but we\u2019re finding out how the array can fine-tune our capabilities<\/a> in probing out into the Oort Cloud. If such perturbers exist, we\u2019re going to turn them up sooner or later as we continue to map the system\u2019s farthest depths.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \nArxiv – A new submm source within a few arcseconds of \u03b1 Centauri: ALMA discovers the most distant object of the solar system<\/a><\/p>\n Arxiv – The serendipitous discovery of a possible new solar system object with ALMA<\/a><\/p>\n The Atacama Large Millimeter\/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of radio telescopes in the Atacama desert<\/a> of northern Chile. Since a high and dry site is crucial to millimeter wavelength operations, the array has been constructed on the Chajnantor plateau at 5,000 meters altitude, near Llano de Chajnantor Observatory and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. Consisting of 66 12-meter (39 ft), and 7-meter (23 ft) diameter radio telescopes observing at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, ALMA is expected to provide insight on star birth during the early universe and detailed imaging of local star and planet formation.<\/p>\n ALMA is an international partnership among Europe, the United States, Canada, several countries from East Asia and the Republic of Chile. Costing about US$1.4 billion, it is the most expensive ground-based telescope in operation<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
\n* an ETNO [Extreme Trans Neptunian Object] (\u226b 100 AU)
\n* a hypothesized Super-Earth (\u223c 300 AU)
\n* a super-cool brown dwarf (\u223c 20 000 AU).<\/p>\n