|
 | This 2001 NASA montage of planets (excluding Pluto) taken by spacecraft managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA. A US astronomer announced he had discovered what could be a 10th planet that is larger than Pluto in the outer reaches of the solar system. click to open  |  | Handout image of artist's concept of what is believed to the 10th newly discovered planet in the solar system. A California astronomer has discovered what he believes is the 10th planet in our solar system, a group of NASA-funded researchers said on July 29, 2005. The new planet, known as 2003UB313, has been identified as the most distant object ever detected orbiting the sun, California Institute of Technology astronomer Michael Brown said. This artist's concept shows planet 2003UB313 at the lonely outer fringes of our solar system. Our sun can be seen in the distance. The new planet, which is yet to be formally named, is at least as big as Pluto and about three times farther away from the Sun than Pluto. The planet was discovered by the Samuel Oschin Telescope at the Palomar Observatory near San Diego, Calif., on January 8, 2005. click to open  |
|