The universe communicates in blue mechanics. Astronomers have been listening to this language for centuries, which led to the disclosure of concealed worlds and forces forming the universe. Now the search for the planet Nine, a hypothetical world that lies far beyond the platoon, feeds the minds of contemporary observers, like the nineteenth-century mystery of inter-earthly: searching for Vulcan. Separated for over a hundred years, both stories are connected by the same human curiosity and the desire to discover the unknown
Modern hunt: Planet Nine
The mystery of the planets of nine begins with anomalies, strange orbital habits of distant objects of the Kuiper belt, an icy body that drift in the external range of the solar system. These items group in a way that seems to break conventional gravitational models, which suggests the presence of an concealed planetary giant lying in the distance outside Pluto's reach. Calculations indicate that this world is several times greater than Earth, orbiting the sun from a long distance, Achematic presence persecute the external resources of our solar system.
The search is enabled. Astronomers using powerful telescopes scan the sky in the hope of detecting even the weakest trace of this elusive world. But this hunt, powered by up-to-date technology and coordinated calculations, brings echoes of earlier astronomical obsession, Lost Planet Vulcan.
Heavenly puzzle
Vulcan's story differed in that his origin never appeared in a telescope staring at the abyss, unlike nine planets. Instead, he emerged from the inconsistency of mathematics. Izaak Newton's gravitational law, which has long been held as the basis of blue mechanics, was a planetary movement with surprising precision. But mercury, the smallest and fastest of the internal planets, did not play together.
Mercury was strange when he moved in the sun. His perihelion, a point on an elliptical path, which is closest to the sun, with time drifted in a way that could not be completely explained by the influence of the gravitational known planets. Astronomers were surprised. The difference was tiny, but huge enough to indicate that something else was happening.
Bold claim of Le Verrier
Go to Urbain Le Verrier, a French mathematics of a significant figure in annals of astronomical history. He properly predicted the existence of Neptune, examining the peculiarities of Uranus's orbit, and this achievement established him as a master of heavenly mechanics. Certainly that he knows what he is doing, he focused on Mercury's irregular behavior.
Le Verrier lifted the solution: an undetected planet, lurking even closer to the sun than mercury, affects its orbit. He called this world Vulcan, after the Roman god of fire.
The astronomical community of that time was lit. If Vulcan were a real, well -known solar system structure would be rewritten. Astronomers around the world aimed at their telescopes and instruments in the sun, wanting to look for this novel world.
Hunting begins
But how do you find a planet so close to the sun, wandering in a blinding glow? It was believed that the solar eclipse, which were considered their best chance. When the moon temporarily blocked the lithe of the sun, it gave the opportunity to see any object circulating close or hid behind the sun.
Observations were soon reported. Both amateur astronomers and professional observers reported that black objects move on the face of the sun or hanging close to its edges. In 1859, a French doctor named Lescarbault claimed that he noticed Vulcana traversing the sun. Le Verrier, examining the findings of Lescarbault, was taken by his work and confirmed it. The wider scientific community sat and noticed.
A cloud of doubts
But soon skepticism established. Volcano observations were unpredictable, the reports differed in size, orbit and time. Two observations did not fit. Some astronomers clung to hope while others began to wonder if the volcano existed at all.
The search lasted. The trips were sent to look for them during solar eclipses, each of which was a novel opportunity to notice Vulcan in action. But the result was the same over and over again: nothing. Planet's candidate seemed more and more elusive.
The more astronomers were looking for, the less they discovered. Excited Vulcan's murmurs began to die.
The spirit is disappearing
Over the years, the mystery grew. But Vulcan could not be found. However, Mercury's unexplained movement was continued. Despite the extensive fact, the evidence did not fit. Phantom Planet seemed to be involved in some complicated space of cosmic skin and search, always out of reach.
It wasn't until the beginning of the 20th century that a breakthrough occurred. But this was not due to the novel telescope or more advanced search. Instead, it was a radically novel way to look at the universe.
New dawn
In 1915, teenage physicist Albert Einstein presented his theory of general relativity. His breakthrough work suggested that gravity was not a strength in the sense of Newton, but the bending of space -time caused by the presence of mass.
Einstein's equations were also a neat explanation of the mysterious movement of Mercury. When the planet orbits so close to the sun, it passes through an area with a highly curved space. The distortion is a bit looking for his path, it is enough to explain the unexplained Chwie, which for decades surprised astronomers.
It turned out that Vulcan was never real. The “missing” planet was the result of our imagination, a mixture caused by the restrictions of Newton physics. The puzzle was solved, not through direct observation, but by understanding the nature of the gravity itself.
Poor reflections of the volcano, murmuring the planet nine
Vulcan's story is a living reminder that science is a process. Although ultimately unsuccessful, hunting for the planet developed in the science of astronomy. But this forced scientists to polish these models, hear the assumptions, and eventually ended with one of the deepest breakthroughs of physics.
One hundred years later we are in this position again. The search for a planet nine, like Vulcan, is motivated by unexplained anomals, a strange orbital behavior suggesting the concealed world. Again, astronomers depend on calculations and indirect evidence, hoping that what they find in their observations will be in line with the theory forecasts.
Has Nine Planet found or will its secret lead to an even deeper thought of our cosmic framework? The answer remains elusive. But if the story taught us something, then every search, or not or not, brings us back to understanding the extensive and mysterious universe that we call the home.
Sources and references
Batygin, K. and Brown, Me (2016). Evidence of a distant giant planet in the solar system. The Astronomical Journal, 151 (2), 22.
Einstein, A. (1915). Gravity field equations. Meeting of Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences, 844–847 reports.
Grosser, M. (1979). Discovery of Neptune: Historical relationship. Harvard University Press.
Levenson, T. (2015). Hunting on Vulcan: And like Albert Einstein destroyed the planet and deciphered the universe. Random house.
Newton, I. (1687). Mathematics of nature philosophy. Royal Society.
Standage, T. (2000). Neptune file: History of astronomical competition and pioneers of planetary science. Walker & Co.
Trujillo, California, I Sheppard, SS (2014). A body similar to Sedna with perihelia 80 astronomical units. Nature, 507 (7493), 471–474.
Verrier, ul (1859). A letter on the planet, which was said to be in the orbit of mercury. Comptes rendus de l'Académie des sciences, 49, 379-382.
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