A recent study shows that the shell of icy objects at the edge of the solar system, known as the Oort cloud, contains a pair of spiral arms, making it look like a miniature galaxy.
Until now, the shape of the cloud and the influence of external forces on it have remained largely unclear. However, a new study published on arXiv on February 16 argues that the cloud may resemble a spiral disk, one of the key characteristics needed to classify it as an independent galaxy. The work has not yet undergone peer review.
The Oort Cloud is made up of the remains of the solar system's giant planets, such as Jupiter, Neptune, Uranus, and Saturn, after they formed 4.6 billion years ago. Some of these remnants are such that some researchers classify them as dwarf planets.
The inner edge of the Oort Cloud is located 5,000 astronomical units from the Sun, while its outer edge reaches 100,000 AU. One AU is 93 million miles, which is the average distance between the Earth and the Sun. Based on this data, NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft, which travels a million miles a day, will not reach the edge of the Oort Cloud for 300 years and will not leave it for another 300,000 years.
The objects in the cloud are so small and faint that they are difficult to identify using Earth-based technology. So the researchers behind the new study used data collected from comet orbits and gravitational forces both inside and outside our solar system to create a model of the Oort cloud’s structure. They aim to better understand the Oort cloud’s composition and origins, as this could shed light on the formation history of our solar system.
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