- An invisible object appears to be interacting with other objects along the edge of our solar system, and researchers don’t know exactly what it is.
- Theories of “planet nine” have been proposed, but others believe it may be a small black hole.
- The researchers plan to scan the skies for evidence of the black hole using a new survey.
The search for the ever elusive “Planet Nine” has led scientists down very strange paths. The idea that a planet exists in the confines of our solar system and cannot be easily seen has been floating for some time, and observations of other objects in the area suggest that there is something large that generates a gravitational pull. The easiest explanation would be a planet, but it is not the only possibility.
Now, scientists at Harvard University in association with the Black Hole Initiative want to test the theory that the object that appears to be lurking at the edge of our system is actually a black hole. Yes, you read it correctly; There may be a black hole lurking in our cosmic backyard.
The researchers plan to search for this so-called “primordial” black hole using data from the Legacy Survey of Space Time, or the LSST mission. The researchers say they can use the data to search for evidence of accretion flares, which are created when objects get too close to a black hole.
“In the vicinity of a black hole, small bodies approaching it melt as a result of heating from the accumulation of background gas from the interstellar medium to the black hole,” Amir Siraj of Harvard said in a statement.
“Once they melt, small bodies are subject to tidal disruption by the black hole, followed by tidal-disrupted body buildup in the black hole.” Dr. Avi Loeb, who is a co-author of the research, explains. “Because black holes are inherently dark, the radiation emitted by matter on its way to the mouth of the black hole is our only way to illuminate this dark environment.”
The problem here is that the LSST has not yet started. Scientists believe the survey will be able to detect such flashes, but they won’t know for sure until hardware begins scanning the skies twice a week as currently planned. The black hole itself, if it exists, would be an incredibly intriguing object for future study.
A “planet mass” black hole could exist with a mass between five and ten times that of our own planet. Being a black hole, the object would be much, much smaller than Earth, and the researchers suggest that it could be as small as a grapefruit. Even at that size, it would have enough gravitational pull to produce the kinds of movements in nearby objects that have been observed at the edges of our system.
Mike Wehner has reported on technology and video games for the past decade, covering the latest news and trends in virtual reality, handheld devices, smartphones, and future technology. Most recently, Mike served as technical editor at The Daily Dot, and has appeared on USA Today, Time.com, and countless other websites and in print. His love of reporting is second only to his addiction to games.
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