Astronomy:Tidally detached exomoon

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Short description: Planet that was formerly a moon of another planet

Tidally detached exomoons, also known as orphaned exomoons[1] or ploonets,[2] are hypothetical exoplanets that were formerly exomoons of another planet, before being ejected from their orbits around their parent planets by tidal forces during planetary migration, and becoming planets in their own right.[3][4] As of 2024, no tidally detached moons have yet been definitively detected, but they are believed to be likely to exist around other stars, and potentially detectable by photometric methods. Researchers at Columbia University have suggested that a disrupting detached exomoon may be causing the unusual fluctuations in brightness exhibited by Tabby's Star.[5]

History

The term ploonet, a blend of the words planet and moon,[6][7] was first used in a 2019 paper in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.[2][8] It received attention from mainstream media sources,[2][9][10] with CNET calling it "charmingly goofy".[11]

See also

References

  1. Metzger, Brian D.; Stone, Nicholas C.; Martinez, Miguel (20 June 2019). "Orphaned Exomoons: Tidal Detachment and Evaporation Following an Exoplanet-Star Collision" (in en). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 489 (4): 5119. doi:10.1093/mnras/stz2464. Bibcode2019MNRAS.489.5119M. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Starr, Michelle (10 July 2019). "Scientists Are Trying to Make 'Ploonets' a Thing, And We Are Here For It" (in en-gb). https://www.sciencealert.com/this-paper-is-trying-to-make-ploonets-a-thing-and-we-are-here-for-it. 
  3. Sucerquia, Mario; Alvarado-Montes, Jaime A.; Zuluaga, Jorge I.; Cuello, Nicolas; Giuppone, Cristian (27 June 2019). "Ploonets: formation, evolution, and detectability of tidally detached exomoons" (in en). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 489 (2): 2313. doi:10.1093/mnras/stz2110. Bibcode2019MNRAS.489.2313S. 
  4. Grossman, David (10 July 2019). "They're Not Moons. They're Not Planets. They're Ploonets." (in en-US). https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/deep-space/a28353404/what-are-ploonets/. 
  5. Starr, Michelle (18 September 2019). "There's a New Explanation For Mysterious Tabby's Star: A Melting Ploonet" (in en-gb). https://www.sciencealert.com/a-new-explanation-for-tabby-s-star-a-melting-ploonet. 
  6. Astronomy Magazine, "Ploonets: When a planet's moon goes rogue", Jake Parks, 15 July 2019
  7. How Stuff Works Magazine, "Ploonets: When Moons Become Planets", Patrick J. Kiger, 23 July 2019
  8. Sucerquia, Mario; Alvarado-Montes, Jaime A.; Zuluaga, Jorge I.; Cuello, Nicolas; Giuppone, Cristian (27 June 2019). "Ploonets: formation, evolution, and detectability of tidally detached exomoons" (in en). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 489 (2): 2313–2322. doi:10.1093/mnras/stz2110. Bibcode2019MNRAS.489.2313S. 
  9. Whyte, Chelsea (4 July 2019). "Exomoons that run away from their planets could become 'ploonets'". New Scientist. https://www.newscientist.com/article/2208411-exomoons-that-run-away-from-their-planets-could-become-ploonets/. 
  10. Strickland, Ashley (17 July 2019). "Wandering moons called 'ploonets' could be the culprits behind astronomical mysteries". CNN News. https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/17/world/ploonets-moon-astronomy-mystery-scn-trnd/index.html. 
  11. Kooser, Amanda (10 July 2019). "Ploonets, hell yeah. Runaway moons get a charmingly goofy name" (in en). https://www.cnet.com/news/astronomers-discover-miniature-runaway-moons-theyve-dubbed-ploonets/.