It’s a question that has baffled scientists around the world for years.
Is there really a ninth planet hiding in our solar system?
And if so, how do we find it?
Now, researchers from Rice University claim to have fresh evidence of Planet Nine – as well as a method to find it.
Based on complex simulations, the team says there’s around a 40 per cent chance that a Planet Nine-like object is hiding in our solar system.
And if it does exist, it could be discovered using the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, they say.
Located on a mountaintop in Chile, this observatory features the largest camera ever built – and is set to send back its first images within weeks.
‘With its unparalleled ability to survey the sky in depth and detail, the observatory is expected to significantly advance the search for distant solar system objects, increasing the likelihood of either detecting Planet Nine or providing the evidence needed to rule out its existence,’ the researchers said in a statement.

Researchers from Rice University claim to have fresh evidence of Planet Nine – as well as a method to find it

Using complex simulations, the team showed that wide-orbit planets like Planet Nine are not anomalies
Planet Nine is a hypothetical planet, first theorised by astronomers from California Institute of Technology (Caltech) back in 2016.
Said to have a mass about five to 10 times that of Earth, this hypothetical, Neptune-sized planet would circle our sun on a highly elongated path, far beyond Pluto.
If it does exist, Planet Nine could help to explain the unique orbits of some smaller objects in the Kupier Belt – a region of icy debris that extends far beyond the orbit of Neptune.
In their new study, the team set out to understand whether or not Planet Nine could really exist.
Using complex simulations, the team showed that wide-orbit planets like Planet Nine are not anomalies.
Instead, they’re natural by-products of a chaotic early phase in planetary system development, according to the team.
‘Essentially, we’re watching pinballs in a cosmic arcade,’ said André Izidoro, lead author of the study.
‘When giant planets scatter each other through gravitational interactions, some are flung far away from their star.
‘If the timing and surrounding environment are just right, those planets don’t get ejected, but rather they get trapped in extremely wide orbits.’
The simulations showed that planets are pushed into these wide orbits by internal instabilities, before being stabilised by the gravitational influence of nearby stars.
‘When these gravitational kicks happen at just the right moment, a planet’s orbit becomes decoupled from the inner planetary system,’ explained Nathan Kaib, co-author of the study.
‘This creates a wide-orbit planet—one that’s essentially frozen in place after the cluster disperses.’
As for what this means for Planet Nine, the researchers say there’s now a 40 per cent change that the world exists.
‘Our simulations show that if the early solar system underwent two specific instability phases—the growth of Uranus and Neptune and the later scattering among gas giants—there is up to a 40% chance that a Planet Nine-like object could have been trapped during that time,’ Dr Izidoro said.
The team now hopes to use the Vera C. Rubin Observatory to prove the existence of Planet Nine once and for all.
‘As we refine our understanding of where to look and what to look for, we’re not just increasing the odds of finding Planet Nine,’ Dr Izidoro added.
‘We’re opening a new window into the architecture and evolution of planetary systems throughout the galaxy.’
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