![]() The gravitational edge is much farther and is defined by the Oort Cloud, a halo of icy debris left over from the formation of the Solar System. The heliopause is the boundary created when solar wind particles collide with interstellar gas as the Solar System moves through the galaxy. The extent of the Solar System is defined by the solar wind - particles driven by the Sun’s magnetic field - and gravitational influence. The rest of the Solar System is its eight major planets, five dwarf planets, hundreds of moons, and a large number of comets, asteroids, and other small bodies of rock and ice. That star is what drives most of the physical processes in the system, from heating Earth’s atmosphere to allow life, to gently pushing asteroids around and giving comets their tails. The heart of the Solar System is the Sun, a yellow star of moderate mass somewhere in the middle of its life cycle. Planet Nine: A World That Shouldn't Exist Some astronomers think there might be a large “Planet Nine” far beyond the orbit of Pluto, based on unexplained observed motion of icy worlds in the Kuiper Belt. Looking for new and possibly unexpected worlds at the edges of the Solar System. While many of these places were once thought to be dry, astronomers now know there is far more water around the Solar System than just on Earth. Using data from robotic space probes, researchers have discovered water on bodies throughout the Solar System, including the Moon. Studying the chemical composition of Earth’s Moon and other satellites. That behavior is similar to what we see from Mars’ atmosphere, even though Pluto is much farther from the Sun. Pluto in particular reacts relatively strongly to particles from the solar wind, to the point where its atmosphere shows up in X-ray telescopes. Using the Chandra X-ray Observatory to study the icy worlds of the outer Solar System. Using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, astronomers study the reactions of molecules on a comet’s surface and in its tails respond when bombarded by sunlight and high-energy particles from the solar wind.Ĭomets ISON & PanSTARRS: Comets in the ‘X’-Treme ![]() Observing comets in X-ray light to understand the effect the Sun has on them. These missions allow researchers to observe the high-energy radiation driven by the Sun’s magnetic field. Much of the Sun’s radiation is blocked by Earth’s atmosphere, requiring the use of stratospheric rockets such as the Hi-C mission or solar probes like the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). Studying the Sun using probes and instruments on rockets. Pan-STARRS Releases Largest Digital Sky Survey to the World The multi-year Pan-STARRS survey has revealed many comets, asteroids, and other small Solar System bodies. Participating in current and next-generation astronomical surveys mapping a large part of the sky. Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian scientists study the Solar System in many ways: ![]()
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