That’s FarFarOut, Most distant object in the solar system is spotted by scientists more than 140 times farther from the sun than Earth
The most distant object in the solar system has been spotted by scientists in the depths of space – far beyond Pluto.
The faint object is located approximately 140 times further away from the sun than the distance between our star and Earth – known as an astronomical unit (AU).
It has been dubbed ‘FarFarOut’ by its discoverers who admit to knowing very little about the object they accidentally discovered while searching for Planet X, according to Daily Mail.
Dr Scott Sheppard, an astronomer at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington DC, found the object when analysing some data when a talk he was scheduled to give was postponed by 24 hours.
It breaks the record for the most distant object in the solar system of 120 AU (11 billion miles) – which was named Farout and also discovered by Dr Sheppard back in December.
The record-holder before this was the dwarf planet Eris at 96 astronomical units. Pluto, by comparison, is 34 astronomical units away.
The find was first reported at a postponed talk on the ongoing search for Planet X – a giant ninth planet theorised to exist beyond Pluto – at the Carnegie centre after being delayed 24 hours due to snowfall.
It was in this delay that Dr Sheppard located the object when scouring data collected last month.
The discovery is in its infancy, with a formal name not designated to the object and no details of it known.
It marks the latest discovery from a decade-long research project which uses data from the world’s most powerful optical telescopes.
FarFarOut and its predecessor, Farout, remain relative enigmas.
Their orbit’s are a mystery and it remains unknown if they are able to avoid the vast gravitational pull of the four known gas giants.
Years of study are expected to take place to uncover the secrets of FarFarOut to provide more information on what happens at the outermost reaches of the solar system.
Farout, known formally as 2018 VG18, is so far away and moving so slowly it will take a few years to determine its orbit. At that distance, it could take more than 1,000 years to orbit the sun.
N.H.Kh