Uranus' Moons May Hold Clues to a Missing Planet, New Research Suggests

Scientists studying Uranus’ moons say they may have uncovered some of the strongest evidence yet that the early solar system once contained additional giant planets that no longer exist.

According to new simulations highlighted in Icarus and reported by WIRED, researchers tested 122 scenarios involving a chaotic period in the solar system’s history when giant planets likely migrated into their current positions. The findings showed that Uranus’ moon system would have been destroyed in most simulations unless one or more additional giant planets were present and later ejected into interstellar space.

Subscribe free for daily political analysis they won’t broadcast. Join 110K+ readers →

One moon in particular, Miranda, appears to preserve signs of past disruption and reconstruction, making it a leading candidate for studying that violent period.

The research does not prove that a lost planet once orbited the Sun. However, scientists say the current arrangement of Uranus’ moons may be difficult to explain without such a scenario. Future missions to Uranus could help determine whether the moons truly contain evidence of a long-lost planetary sibling.

Subscribe free for daily political analysis they won’t broadcast. Join 110K+ readers →