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THE TRUTH ABOUT: Kuiper belt - Caught on Camera

Comet crash or ice volcano? Scientists are stumped by a secret world past Pluto, and it may be wearing a secret atmosphere

2002 XV93 atmosphere mystery stuns space scientists as a distant Kuiper Belt object reveals unexpected signs of activity. The 470-kilometer icy world challenges old Solar System theories. Researchers believe possible gas, dust, impacts, or icy volcanoes may explain this rare cosmic discovery. The finding shows even small worlds can hold…

The Economic Times

What is Planet Nine, and where is it? Mystery of large hidden planet beyond Neptune explained

What is Planet Nine, and where is it? The question has fascinated astronomers for years. Scientists believe a massive undiscovered planet may exist in the outer Solar System. Although no telescope has directly observed it, unusual movements of Kuiper Belt objects, Extreme Trans-Neptunian Objects, sednoids, and other distant bodies continue…

The Economic Times

Mystery of snowman-shaped space objects cracked

Research adds weight to theory Arrokoth’s two lobes produced by gravitational collapse – and reveals process

The Guardian - UK

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James Webb Space Telescope discovers an alien planetary system's icy edge

The presence of water-ice in the debris disk around a young star could have helped facilitate the growth and development of exoplanets.

Space

How the James Webb Space Telescope is helping size up tiny dwarf planets

A new model that incorporates data gathered by the JWST could help scientists understand the composition and mass of objects in the distant Kuiper Belt and beyond.

Space

Astronomers identify a celestial '3-body problem' lurking in the outer solar system

New research suggests that a binary pair of Kuiper Belt objects, known as the Altjira system, is actually made up of three separate bodies orbiting one another in a complex triad. This rare orbital configuration is often referred to as the "three-body problem."

LiveScience

Hubble Telescope discovers a new '3-body problem' puzzle among Kuiper Belt asteroids (video)

It's a new type of three-body problem for astronomers, who used the Hubble Space Telescope to determine that twin asteroids in the Kuiper Belt could be triplets.

Space

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'There are lots of mysteries in our backyard': Revised solar system chemistry explains long-standing puzzles

Pluto and other large bodies in the Kuiper Belt are surprisingly rich in rock rather than ice. It may be because the early solar system consisted of much more carbon than previously thought, a new study suggests.

Space

'Vega continues to be unusual:' Lack of planets around young star puzzles astronomers

A joint Hubble and James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) project to learn more about the dusty disk around the bright star Vega has found a surprising lack of planets.

Space

2nd Kuiper Belt? Our solar system may be much larger than thought

Eleven objects found at the extremities of the solar system could mark the location of a 'Kuiper Belt 2.'

Space

Scientists Discover Possible Second Kuiper Belt Beyond Neptune's Orbit

Scientists discover potential evidence of two Kuiper Belts in the outer Solar System, hinting at a breakthrough in planetary formation studies.

Top News

Arrokoth the 'space snowman' probably tastes like sweet soap

Kuiper Belt Object Arrokoth, the farthest object ever explored by a spacecraft, likely tastes sweet — and soapy.

Space

Arrokoth the 'space snowman' and other Kuiper Belt objects may be packed with ancient ice

"Space snowman" Arrokoth a other Kuiper Belt objects may contain locked-up ancient ice and gas, suggests a new model that could also explain the explosive behavior of "ice bomb" comets passing the sun.

Space

Icy asteroids help the James Webb Space Telescope uncover Neptune's history

By honing in on Mors-Somnus, a binary pair of icy asteroids that originated within the Kuiper Belt, the James Webb Space Telescope has uncovered secrets surrounding the evolution of Neptune and other icy bodies.

Space

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Space

Our solar system map may need an update — the Kuiper belt could be way bigger

How a cosmic dust storm is helping New Horizons to redraw the map of the outer solar system.

Inverse

Many of the Universe's Remaining Mysteries Exist In This Icy, Doughnut-Shaped Region

Kuiper Belt objects are some of the last remaining unexplored objects in the universe. Finding them has proved incredibly difficult.

Inverse

Mysterious “Planet Nine” May Actually Be a Missing Earth-sized World

A recent study proposes a totally different version of Planet Nine, but which one is really out there?

Space

NASA's New Horizons mission faces an uncertain future (op-ed)

With its budget being trimmed for 2024, NASA is making some weighty decisions... and one includes drastically trimming New Horizons funds by replacing the current science staff with a new team.

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The Guardian - UK

Scientists criticise Nasa for scaling back mission to explore beyond Pluto

Anger at decision to axe the main task of the New Horizons spacecraft to probe the remote Kuiper belt

Inverse

A New NASA Proposal Could Weaken One of Its Most Audacious Missions

The New Horizons mission currently flying through the Kuiper Belt could be facing an unexpected change of plans.

Inverse

One unexpected Solar System moon could be key to finding alien life

Triton may be an ‘ocean world’, a moon that has a solid ice crust over a liquid water subsurface ocean, which extend the habitable zone to the Kuiper Belt, not just the inner solar system.

The Conversation

Curious Kids: Why does it matter if Pluto is a planet or a dwarf planet?

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. Have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Send it to CuriousKidsCanada@theconversation.com.

Inverse

NASA extends 8 missions, including plans to scrutinize a large asteroid that will swing by Earth in 2029

NASA granted eight missions an extension, allowing continued exploration of Mars, asteroids, the Kuiper Belt, and the Moon.

Inverse

One futuristic alien technology could confirm the existence of advanced life in space

Humanity has barely scratched the surface when it comes to cosmic exploration, including our backyard. Self-replicating robots could reveal more about humanity's closest neighbors.

Space

Charon: Pluto's dwarf planet partner

As the gatekeepers to the Kuiper Belt, Charon and Pluto are a unique double dwarf planet system.

People

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