Shaping of the inner Oort cloud by Planet Nine
Erez Michaely, Abraham Loeb

TL;DR
This paper uses numerical simulations to explore how Planet Nine influences the structure of the inner Oort cloud, revealing the formation of a spherical and inclined disk that could be a source of comets.
Contribution
It demonstrates how Planet Nine's secular and resonant interactions shape the inner Oort cloud, providing a new understanding of its morphology and comet production.
Findings
Planet Nine induces a spherical structure in the inner Oort cloud.
The structure's morphology differs from star fly-by scenarios.
Predicted comet production rate is detectable.
Abstract
We present a numerical simulation of the dynamical interaction between the proposed Planet Nine and a debris disk around the Sun for , accounting for the secular perturbation of the four giant planets in two scenarios: (a) an initially thin circular disk around the Sun (b) inclined and eccentric disk. We show, in both scenarios, that Planet Nine governs the dynamics in between and forms spherical structure in the inner part () and inclined disk. This structure is the outcome of mean motion resonances and secular interaction with Planet Nine. We compare the morphology of this structure with the outcome from a fly-by encounter of a star with the debris disk and show distinct differences between the two cases. We predict that this structure serves as a source of comets and calculate the resulting comet production rate to be detectable.
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Taxonomy
TopicsGamma-ray bursts and supernovae · Scientific Research and Discoveries · Space Science and Extraterrestrial Life
