3 ms·
Some estimates for the outer boundary of the Oort Cloud put it at 200,000AU = 3.16ly (more conservative estimates seem to be 1ly or less). Even the inner bounda
by XaspR8d 8y ago
Some estimates for the outer boundary of the Oort Cloud put it at 200,000AU = 3.16ly (more conservative estimates seem to be 1ly or less). Even the inner boundary is thought to be at least double the distance of the object just discovered, so current astonomical hypotheses align with your idea that there's a lot more out there.
- jstanley 8y agoGiven Thorondor's sibling comment to yours: Alpha Centauri A has a mass of 1.1x the sun, and is about 4.37ly away, which would mean our sun's gravity well runs out at (1/2.1)*4.37 = 2.08ly - i.e. any object in orbit 2.08 ly away would (even if affected by nothing else), fall into Alpha Centauri A's gravity well before completing a full orbit and therefore couldn't possibly remain in orbit around our sun. If that's true (and I have no idea whether any of it is true), then I think 2.08ly must be an upper bound on the outer boundary of the Oort cloud. EDIT: Ah, I'm thinking 2-dimensionally. Of course, something could be in a much larger orbit in a plane that doesn't go near Alpha Centauri.
- misthop 8y agoI think the hypothesized inner boundary of the Oort cloud is 2,000 AU[0] making it 20x the distance as this new object, not double. [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oort_cloud https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oort_cloud