Most people have heard about the theory that our solar system started with a big bang, but nobody talks about the leftover residues from it. Trans-Neptunian objects , also known as TNOs, are minor planets with material that were not able to be used to make other planets in our solar system. Furthermore, these objects reside just beyond Neptune and form a ring around the solar system called the Kuiper belt. Scientists say that learning more about TNOs can help us further understand the formation of our solar system.
Barnett,2021 – photo of the Kuiper Belt| source:https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/system/internal_resources/details/original/3267_KBO-Paths_LegacyMissions2.jpg
Classical, Resonant , or Non-resonant?
Trans-Neptunian objects can be classified as either classical, resonant, or non-resonant. Non-resonant TNOs have a nearly constant free inclination, which when calculated can determine whether the object is hot or cold. If a TNO is considered hot, it tells us that they were formed close to the sun and then migrated to the Kuiper belt. Whereas, cold objects haven’t had any real location changes.
Video focusing on the distinction between the hot and cold populations:
Methods
In, “Free Inclinations for Trans-Neptunian Objects in the Main Kuiper Belt” Yukun Huang and his colleagues downloaded samples of 2018 TNOs in the Kuiper belt. They manually classified them into the standard three categories and developed a method of accurately calculating the free inclination of those objects. This was formulated by considering the acceleration, eccentricity, inclination, and precession rate of the objects. The main findings that came from this paper were that the innermost boundary of the cold population is at 42 astronomical units, free inclination values are helpful in studying the structure of the Kuiper belt, and the cold and hot populations of TNOs are well separated.
Yukun explaining his research approach:
In conclusion, Trans-Neptunian objects are said to have important information about our solar system’s past, such as the migration and formation of giant planets. However, it is still unsure how much of the Kuiper belt we’ve explored so far, since there are different models, and it’s such a vast area. In addition, this topic is not a priority in astrophysics which suggests that it will take some time before any mysteries regarding the Kuiper belt and TNOs can be solved.
Tim Gunther, n.d.:Orbital plane the the rotation of free inclinations| source: https://media.nationalgeographic.org/assets/photos/000/285/28546.jpg
– By Jack Wu, Shilpa Shrestha, Hanna McDonnell, and Chenyang Luo