HackerPapers

arXiv:2004.14192astro-ph.EP

Searching for a Black Hole in the Outer Solar System

Edward Witten

Abstract

There are hints of a novel object ("Planet 9") with a mass $5-10$ $M_\oplus$ in the outer Solar System, at a distance of order 500 AU. If it is a relatively conventional planet, it can be found in telescopic searches. Alternatively, it has been suggested that this body might be a primordial black hole (PBH). In that case, conventional searches will fail. A possible alternative is to probe the gravitational field of this object using small, laser-launched spacecraft, like the ones envisioned in the Breakthrough Starshot project. With a velocity of order $.001~c$, such spacecraft can reach Planet 9 roughly a decade after launch and can discover it if they can report timing measurements accurate to $10^{-5}$ seconds back to Earth.

arXiv comments
4 pp, additional references
Journal reference
DOI
Subjects
astro-ph.EPEarth and Planetary Astrophysics hep-phHigh Energy Physics, Phenomenology hep-thHigh Energy Physics, Theory

On Hacker News

Linked by 2 identifiable commenters in 5 comments across 4 threads, from Aug 2020 to Feb 2024. Found in 3 HN submissions from Apr 2020 to May 2020. Open submission discussions.

Comments linking this paper, per year.

Discussed in comments4 threads

  1. One place Planet 9 could be hiding 1 comment

    • > If there were such a thing out there we could send a probe to it. You might be interested in Ed Witten's paper about this topic: "Searching for a Black Hole in the Outer Solar System", https://arxiv.org/abs/2004.14192 (See also this related comment from the HN discussion back…

      codethiefView on HNParent context

  2. What if Planet 9 is a Primordial Black Hole? (2019) 2 comments

    • > I didn't recognize the name but figured he was the guy who came up with M-theory As it so happens, he's also the guy behind this paper: "Searching for a Black Hole in the Outer Solar System", https://arxiv.org/abs/2004.14192 :-)

      codethiefView on HNParent context

    • You might be interested in Ed Witten's paper about this exact problem: "Searching for a Black Hole in the Outer Solar System", https://arxiv.org/abs/2004.14192

      codethiefView on HNParent context

  3. Can we make a black hole? And if we could, what could we do with it? 1 comment

    • > It's theorized that there is a grapefruit-sized black hole orbiting our sun in the outer reaches of our solar system with a mass of 5 to 10 earths. Source: https://arxiv.org/abs/2004.14192 (There was also a pretty good discussion about it here on HN.) > would probably be too…

      codethiefView on HNParent context

  4. Humanly Traversable Wormholes 1 comment

    • There is some gravitational anomaly in our solar system. There was a paper from earlier this year suggesting that it might be caused by a small black hole, although I guess there is no reason it couldn't also be caused by a wormhole. Edit: Here is the paper…

      jeffreyrogersView on HNParent context

Submitted to Hacker News

Connected through shared HN threads, not inferred similarity or a recommendation.