Washington, September 5: An international team of astronomers has found an unusual object whose backward and tilted orbit around the Sun may clarify the origins of certain comets.
Touted as the first discovery of its kind, researchers from Canada, France and the United States have discovered the object that orbits around the Sun backwards, and tilted at an angle of 104 degrees – almost perpendicular to the orbits of the planets.
“Certain types of comets are not naturally produced after planet formation, especially those with highly tilted orbits,” said University of British Columbia astronomer Brett Gladman. “This discovery may finally show how they transition from the Oort Cloud to become objects like Halley’s Comet,” he added.