Questions tagged [planet]
Questions on astronomical objects orbiting a star massive enough to be rounded, not massive enough to cause fusion, and which have cleared its orbit of planetesimals.
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Are there large underground caverns on Mars?
Scientists talk about the possibility of life underground on Mars, and I assume they are talking about microscopic life that can live in small gaps in the soil or rock. But is there any evidence that ...
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Any cheap (less than 100 euro) telescope for observing Jupiter? [closed]
The moon is not challenging.
I would like to observe the big planets and their rings.
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Is Mars visible from naked-eye from Michigan (47N, 88W) these days?
Is Mars visible at night sky of Michigan these days?
I was trying to search for Mars from Michigan (at elevation of 30 deg and azimuth of 220 deg) around 11:45 PM with binoculars of 20x60 but didn't ...
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Why do we not send diggers to Mars if we think there's underground water?
A friend of mine asked me this question:
If we have a guess that there may be underground water on Mars, why do
we not send rovers with diggers?
I do have a few ideas, but I want alternative ...
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Which is the most early type star with a planet discovered by radial velocity method?
We have discovered planets in Beta_Pictoris(A6V)here and Fomalhaut alpha(A3v)here.
However they were discovered by direct images.
There should be an stellar type limit by RV?
What is the most ...
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When will all eight planets in our solar system align?
Ignoring expansion of the universe, entropy, decaying orbits, and interference from any bodies colliding with or otherwise interfering with their orbits, will the eight planets known planets in our ...
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What would happen if a planet is removed from the solar system? [closed]
More exactly what would to happen to us/Earth in general if any of the gas giants is removed by magic from the solar system ?
How long would it take after such change before we notice it ?
How major ...
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Why planet's orbit is not perpendicular or random ?
Why planet's orbit is not perpendicular or random ? It always seems each planet is revolving on the same geometric-plane around the star.
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Intrasolar planetary surface temperature change divergence from Earth
Considering the vast amount of insulating gas emitted by human activity on Earth without a coincident release on all other planets in the solar system as well as the phenomenon that planets in a solar ...
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How small can a planet be and still have Earth-like gravity?
A planet made from denser material than Earth might have equal gravity to Earth but a smaller radius. How small can a planet be and still have Earth gravity?
Ideally it should be habitable by humans, ...
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Is the surface of Venus red hot?
I was wondering, is the surface of Venus so hot that it would glow red in the dark (e.g. on the dark side of Venus)? I am working on making a solar system simulator, and that would make for a great ...
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Movement of the satellites of the planets . . .
Is the movement of the satellites (moons) of a planet coplanar, like the planets being coplanar around the local Sun?
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Why don't planets and asteroids have (cometary) tails?
Comets have tails. We all know that, and a lucky few have seen the better known. So why don't the planets (e.g. Earth, Mars) have tails? Why don't asteroids don't have tails?
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Present distances between planet. How can I find them?
It's "commonly known" how distant are our solar system planets from Sun. But we can't easily say that about planets, which distances can differ greatly, without some observations (or simulations, ...
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Galactic Habitable Zone
Do galaxies have habitable zones the same as stars do? Say in a galaxy with a very active nucleus producing a lot of heat and radiation, would there be a point at which no star's planets could harbor ...
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What is the orientation of planetary orbits?
I'm working on a planetary motion simulator. I've been working through the equations anomaly, eccentricity, etc. The one thing I'm curious about is if all the ellipses are oriented the exact same way (...
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Do planetary surface temperatures change in unison in a solar system?
Are there any known correlations between the changes in planetary surface temperatures in a solar system?
If so, do the farthest planets have smaller albeit correlated changes?
user1098
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What method is used to calculate the 'quality' of a solar/planetary image?
What sort of algorithm is used to calculate the relative quality of an image, such as is performed by PIPP, Registax, or Avistack?
Such applications take planetary or solar images and prior to ...
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How are rogue planets discovered?
Planets are usually found by observing a star and waiting for the light level to drop when a planet passes in front of it, but what about rogue planets that don't have host stars?
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Which planet is also the name of an element? [closed]
Which planet is also the name of an element?
I came across this question on cosmos quest and need and answer
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Rotational speeds of the material forming planets should increase, not decrease
We know that planets form as a result of gaseous material revolving around a center of mass that froze to form planets. However shouldn't the angular speed of that matter increase as they go closer to ...
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If oxygen was abundant in Neptune, would there be combustion?
Since Neptune/Uranus have high percentages of methane, wouldn't it be highly likely that there will be combustion (triggered by the lightning storms or any other factor) if oxygen was abundant?
Will ...
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Any possibility for life on moons of planets in our Solar System
We all focused on our moon, to find water or life, or any thing related to life. But my question is, is there any chance for life in moons of other planets in our solar system, others have too many ...
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the most accurate system that can show the positions of planets at my birthday [closed]
My birthday : 4 December 1982
If you have such astronomical calculator on your computer please send me the result !
Alternatively if you know an online astronomical service for my purpose please ...
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Is there anything special about our position in the galaxy thats necessary for life?
It's a fact that our planet's location from our parent star (among other factors) is of crucial importance to the existence of life. But can our position in the galaxy be considered a factor when ...
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Can orbital migration cause a planet to crash into the sun?
If the planets move out of their current orbits into other orbits over long periods of time could this cause a planet to crash into the sun? Maybe the term crash is a little dramatic, could the orbit ...
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How do kepler orbits account for planetary migration?
This article got me thinking if kepler orbits explain how a planet moves in a solar system how can a planet migrate as explained in the article. At some point don't the kepler orbits must need some ...
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Does the gravity of the planets affect the orbit of other planets in our solar system?
When one planet passes near another during its trip around the sun, does their gravitational pull is strong enough to disrupt noticeably each other's orbit ?
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Would Venus have any significant effects on Earth if its orbit were entirely within the habitable zone?
If Venus was entirely inside the habitable zone, or life zone, would its proximity to the Earth provoke any remarkable changes to the Earth?
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Why are planets spherical?
I am a complete novice when it comes to astronomy, but someone asked me the above question casually. It seems as though planets are all roughly spherical, whereas other celestial bodies aren't ...
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Is the discovery of Alien or Extra Terrestrial Life a function of the science of Astronomy?
Is the discovery of Alien or Extra Terrestrial Life a function of the science of Astronomy? When i read astronomy articles on the search for new Planets or discussions on Mars a lot of the topic is on ...
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Telescope buying guide for a beginner in India
I am located in the southern part of India and am looking forward to buy a telescope to gaze up to look ay farther planets, moons in our solar system and take pictures. How should I go about getting a ...
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Which planet or moon has all resources that can be used to sustain life in a controlled biosphere? [closed]
Now that we are making it to Mars, continuing onward, in an effort for humanity to civilize other planets, not just setting up residential colonies, but to mine minerals and carry on geological and ...
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What does the term alien planet actually refer to?
This article left me wondering what do they mean by the term alien planet? Aren't all planets simply alien by default, or do they mean planets outside our solar system are alien? Do they mean there is ...
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Is it possible for a moon to orbit a planet floating free in the galaxy rather than orbiting a star
This article got me thinking, can a planet hold a moon in orbit if it is just floating in the galaxy by itself not as part of a star system? Can a celestial body even qualify as a planet if it is ...
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Why are orbits elliptical instead of circular?
Why do planets rotate around a star in a specific elliptical orbit with the star at one of it's foci? Why isn't the orbit a circle?
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Hypothetical trans-Neptunian planets orbiting the Sun
The planet HD 106906 b was found at 650 AU from its home star, a star not so different from the Sun. Fomalhaut b is also a young planet that is orbiting very far away from its star.
These two planets ...
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Why do the planets in the Solar system stay in the same orbital plane?
An earlier question addressed why all planets formed in the same orbital plane, but how is this angle maintained? What prevents the planets from taking on a different orbital plane?
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Find distance from star to star?
How do you find the distance from a star/planet/black hole to another? I know people can calculate the distance from Earth to a star, but what about from one to another?
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Doesn't gravity attract objects in space until they collide?
If the formula to calculate the force of gravity between two objects is:
$$F = GM_1M_2/r^2,$$
why do planets stay in orbit? Or is there another formula at work?
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How would I measure that I'm at a pole?
How would a person measure that he is at a planetary pole? My first inclination is to use a sextant to ensure that the Sun remains at a constant inclination. However, due to the orbit around the Sun ...
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Does a planet's mass or gravity affect the height of it's mountains?
According to this Wikipedia page, the top five highest mountains on Mars (and the highest on Venus) are all taller than Mount Everest (and Mauna Kea as measured from the ocean floor).
Does a planet's ...
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Is there a upper limit to the number of planets orbiting a star?
Our sun has 8 planets orbiting as well as a number of dwarf planets. Are there any calculations that hint as to whether this number is close to some theoretical maximum value or are we simply an ...
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Do planetary rings have geometric bounds?
Are there any bounds on where a planetary ring can form and maintain orbit relative to the planet?
Do they have to be in a circular equatorial orbit?
Is there a min or max altitude, say with respect ...
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Changes to Earth's orbit
Any time a spacecraft comes in close proximity to a planet and if the spacecraft has the right angle then it is able to use the planet's velocity to move itself further into space.
According to ...
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Is it possible the Nebular Hypothesis and Planetesimal Theory are not correct? [closed]
For almost 3 centuries now the Nebular Hypothesis and Planetesimal Theory have become the preeminent explanations for how the Solar System and Planets evolved. Yet there is still no explanation for ...
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What might cause a planet to have a significant tilt in their orbit?
Most of the planets in our solar system all orbit along the same plane, supposedly because of the almost flat dust clouds that formed the planets.
But some planets, such as the one featured below, ...
user96
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What effects do other planets have on the solar system?
For instance, Jupiter is the biggest planet in our solar system. Due to it's gravitational mass it can deflect meteorites and protect Earth from the Oort cloud. While these are positives, the ...
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What reason is there to doubt the existence of the hypothesised planet Tyche in the far distant solar system?
Please note, I do not necessarily believe in its existence, just after a scientific (hence, non-Wikipedia) reasoning to doubt the planet's existence, other than the "we would have seen it" argument. ...
user8
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How do we detect if a planet has a liquid core?
In case of Earth, we have many hints about the internal structure of our planet, from what I know, the most important of which is analyzing seismic waves.
Do we have any instruments to detect if ...
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