A possible long-lived belt of objects between Uranus and Neptune

被引:40
作者
Holman, MJ
机构
[1] Can. Inst. for Theor. Astrophysics, McLennan Physical Laboratories, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont. M5S 3H8
关键词
D O I
10.1038/42890
中图分类号
O [数理科学和化学]; P [天文学、地球科学]; Q [生物科学]; N [自然科学总论];
学科分类号
07 ; 0710 ; 09 ;
摘要
Recent discoveries of objects orbiting beyond Neptune(1-5) have emphasized that our understanding of the distribution and dynamics of material in the outer Solar System is very incomplete. This trans-neptunian population-known as the Kuiper belt-is thought to act as a relatively stable reservoir of objects that could become short-period comets(6-9), although there may be other regions of stability in the outer Solar System that could also supply such comets. Here I use numerical simulations to identify one such long-lived region between the orbits of Uranus and Neptune. I show that in the region 24-27 AU from the Sun, about 0.3 per cent of an initial population of small bodies moving on low-eccentricity, low-inclination orbits could survive for the age of the Solar System. The actual existence of this hypothetical belt is not precluded by currently available observational Limits, and there could be as much as similar to 5 x 10(-4) Earth masses of material populating this region-comparable to the mass of the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
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收藏
页码:785 / 788
页数:4
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