Corralling a Distant Planet with Extreme Resonant Kuiper Belt Objects
Abstract
The four longest period Kuiper Belt objects have orbital periods close to integer ratios with each other. A hypothetical planet with an orbital period of ∼17,117 years and a semimajor axis ∼665 au would have N/1 and N/2 period ratios with these four objects. The orbital geometries and dynamics of resonant orbits constrain the orbital plane, the orbital eccentricity, and the mass of such a planet as well as its current location in its orbital path.
- Publication:
-
The Astrophysical Journal
- Pub Date:
- June 2016
- DOI:
- 10.3847/2041-8205/824/2/L22
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1603.02196
- Bibcode:
- 2016ApJ...824L..22M
- Keywords:
-
- celestial mechanics;
- Kuiper belt: general;
- planets and satellites: detection;
- planets and satellites: dynamical evolution and stability;
- Astrophysics - Earth and Planetary Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- Shortened version with a few changes in response to peer review, in press at ApJL. Corrected minor errors, Fig 4 is now higher resolution, Fig 5 is now in RA/Dec