Uranus' odd tilt: Scientists might have solved the puzzle
What's the story
Uranus has remarkable differences from its 'planetary twin' Neptune.
One such contrast is the tilt angle of 98 degrees. This makes the planet's direction of spin almost perpendicular to that of its orbit.
According to a new paper released on the preprint website arXiv, researchers claim that the migration of one of Uranus' former satellites caused it to tip over.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Humans have been extremely inquisitive about space since time immemorial. Scientific breakthroughs and technological advancements have successfully provided a glimpse into the unseen realm. However, certain questions still remain to be answered.
The strange tilt and clockwise spin of Uranus have evoked curiosity.
Adding to existing theories, researchers have now come up with a plausible explanation behind its extreme skewness.
Assumptions
Giant collisions were assumed to have caused the tilt
A popular theory was that Uranus might have been hit by a massive celestial object during its initial formation phase, invariably causing it to fall over to one side. However, there isn't specific reason why giant objects whizzing about in space would specifically target Uranus.
According to scientists, a more likely explanation is that Uranus lost one of its former moons.
Explanation
Scientists claim that Uranus once had a massive satellite
Evidence suggests that the spin-axis dynamics of Jupiter and Saturn are affected by the migration of their satellites.
Simulation-based studies reveal that the current moons of Uranus cannot cause such a tilt.
The gravitational effect of a massive moon could have caused this impact. Moreover, a clash between the unstable planet and the moon is thought to have rendered its clockwise spin.
Information
Is this the final conclusion?
The research paper, which has been accepted for publication in the journal of Astronomy and Astrophysics, awaits the peer-review results. Further studies and inputs from other similar research groups would help in validating the proposed conclusion.