British astronomer, Michael Rowan-Robinson, claimed to have discovered the alleged Planet 9. The existence of this planet was first hypothesized in 2016, and the topic has since resurfaced.
His data obtained by Market Research Telecast claims the new world is three to five times larger than Earth and circles the Sun at a distance of around 225 times that of our planet.
Rowan-Robinson discovered his new world in historical observations obtained using a space telescope.
British Astronomer 'Finds' Planet 9
Rowan-Robinson revisits IRAS data to find for something that points to Planet 9 after nearly 40 years of searching.
The Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) is an observatory that examines the infrared portion of the spectrum, allowing it to perceive any heat emission, even in the furthest and darkest objects.
IRAS spotted around 250,000 infrared sources in the sky during 10 months, Olhar Digital said. Rowan-Robinson conducted his search using this database.
Three IRAS detections made in June, July, and September 1983 grabbed Rowan-eye Robinson's because they looked like the sort of object he was looking for among the hundreds of sources he analyzed.
If their estimates are true, this object is now in the direction of the Cepeuus Constellation, has between 3 and 5 earth masses, and orbits the Sun at a distance of 225 Astronomical Units, or 225 times the distance between Earth and the Sun.
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Despite Michael Rowan-acknowledged Robinson's expertise and experience, the item he discovered in the IRAS photos need further verification.
It's impossible to even say that it exists. Even if it does, it will very probably not be the Planet 9 suggested by Batygin and Brown in 2016.
It may sound audacious to imply that this is a possible Planet 9 contender. On the other hand, Rowan-Robinson advises that it be tested if an object with such properties may cause the gravitational interference seen in trans-Neptunian objects.
Who is Rowan-Robinson?
Michael Rowan-Robinson is an English astronomer and past president of the Royal Astronomical Society. He is a professor emeritus of Astrophysics at Imperial College London.
He is currently 79 years old and is most known for advising Brian May, guitarist of Queen, in his PhD dissertation in Astrophysics. His contribution to astronomy, however, goes much beyond that.
He was formerly the leader of the astrophysics group until May 2007, and the Gresham Professor of Astronomy from 1981 to 1982.
According to People Pill, The Institute of Physics awarded Rowan-Robinson the Hoyle Medal in 2008 for his work in infrared and submillimetre astronomy and observational cosmology.
The asteroid 4599 Rowan was dubbed "Rowan" in honor of Michael Rowan-Robinson, who was found in 1985 by Henri Debehogne at the European Southern Observatory. Despite his contributions to extragalactic astronomy, Rowan-Robinson utilized data from IRAS to establish a limit on the number of undiscovered Jupiter-like planets beyond Neptune's orbit.
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