Scientists discover mysterious new world
Astronomers may need to redraw our solar system’s map after discovering a Pluto-sized dwarf planet, 2017 OF201, lurking at its outer edges. Found by Princeton researchers while searching for the hypothetical “Planet 9,” this icy world spans about 435 miles wide. Its extreme orbit—reaching 1,600 times the Earth-Sun distance—challenges previous assumptions about our solar system’s boundaries, stretching far beyond the Kuiper Belt.
The dwarf planet’s 25,000-year orbit suggests more undiscovered objects may exist in this distant region. Lead researcher Sihao Cheng estimates there could be “another hundred or so” similar bodies too faint to detect with current technology. This discovery reignites questions about what else lies in the solar system’s uncharted fringes, pushing scientists to develop new methods for exploring these remote cosmic frontiers.
