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Space

Our solar system could be hiding an extra planet the size of Uranus

Many planets are thought to be flung away from their stars, but it’s possible that some get trapped on the way out – and one could be lurking at the edge of our own solar system

By Leah Crane

27 June 2023

Beyond the Kuiper Belt (seen here) lies the theorised Oort cloud, where an extra planet could be hiding

NASA

Our solar system could be hiding an extra planet in its outermost reaches. It is possible that a giant planet lurks in the Oort cloud, which begins hundreds of billions of kilometres beyond Pluto and has typically been considered the domain of comets.

Most multi-planet systems, especially those with giant worlds like our own solar system, undergo what is called a dynamical instability at some point in their lifetime, wherein the planets interact gravitationally and violently swing past one another.…

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