FP TrendingDec 16, 2020 12:32:07 PM IST
Scientists have now discovered a super high network to travel through the solar system much faster than previously thought possible. According to the study’s authors, such routes could drift comets and asteroids near Jupiter to Neptune in less than a decade and to 100 astronomical units in less than a century. Authors of the study say they can be used to send spacecraft to the extreme extremities of the planetary system relatively quickly and also track objects near Earth.
This image is the combination of near ultraviolet data shown in yellow and far ultraviolet data shown in blue. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech
According to an statement by UC San Diego News Center, in a paper published Nov. 25, researchers observed the dynamic structure of these pathways, forming connected arcs in space manifolds that reach all the way from Uranus and beyond.
The newly discovered “celestial autobahn,” or œcelestial highway, operates for several decades in contrast to the millions of years that usually characterize the dynamics of the solar system.
According to researchers, most star arc structures are linked to Jupiter and its gravity. The structures were solved by collecting numerical data on millions of orbits in the solar system and calculating how they fit into already known space manifolds.
While the results need to be studied further, researchers say both determine how they can be used by spacecraft and how such manifolds behave near Earth, controlling asteroid and meteorite encounters.