In tribute to him, this frigid, dark area is now designated as the "Kuiper Belt".
Jonathan Lunine, a scientist from Cornell University who plans to utilize the James Webb Space Telescope to investigate some of these targets stated, "These celestial bodies are preserved in the solar system's formation graveyard. They are positioned where they can exist for billions of years, and there aren't many locations like that in our solar system. We are curious to know what they resemble."
Lunine and his team have a single objective in mind, to examine these celestial bodies to identify the ices that existed in the early Solar System. The scientists aim to compare these worlds, their geological and atmospheric activities with the primary planets.
Despite being incredibly cold and dim, Kuiper Belt objects emit infrared light, a wavelength invisible to the human eye. The James Webb Space Telescope is specifically engineered to detect this infrared light. In their study of these remote objects, scientists will implement a technique known as spectroscopy, which dissects light into its individual colors to ascertain the properties of the matter emitting it.
The objects comprising the Kuiper Belt vary in size. Some appear in pairs, others in groups of three or more, while some possess moons and rings. The colors they exhibit could potentially signify their formation history or varying exposure to sunlight.
As explained by Heidi Hammel, Webb's interdisciplinary scientist for solar system observations and vice president for science at the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) in Washington, D.C., "Some objects seem to have a redder tone, others are bluer. The question is, why? With Webb, we will be able to gather information about surface chemistry that could possibly provide us with clues as to why there are these distinct populations in the Kuiper Belt."
Located between Jupiter and Neptune is a varied population of entities known as centaurs. These small solar system bodies have been ejected from the Kuiper Belt. Besides directly observing current Belt objects, the JWST program also includes the study of solar system bodies that have been dislodged from the Belt itself.
These ex-Kuiper Belt objects have orbits that have been substantially disrupted, bringing them considerably closer to the Sun. As conveyed by John Stansberry of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, who is leading a distinct team that will utilize Webb to explore Kuiper Belt objects:
"Centaurs have short lifespans due to their orbits crossing those of Neptune, Uranus, and Saturn. They generally only persist for about 10 million years. Subsequently, they encounter a strong interaction with one of the major planets, resulting in either their ejection from the solar system or absorption by the Sun."
Another body of interest to the James Webb Space Telescope is Neptune's moon Triton, the largest of the ice giant's 13 moons, which has many similarities to Pluto.
As Hammel explained, "Even though it is Neptune's moon, we have evidence to suggest that it is a Kuiper belt object that came too close to Neptune at some time in its past, and was caught in orbit around Neptune. Triton was studied by the Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1989. The spacecraft data will provide us with a very important 'fundamental truth' for our Webb observations of Kuiper Belt objects."
Here is a small sampling of some of the dozens of current and former Kuiper Belt objects that the James Webb will observe: Pluto and Charon: The dwarf planet Pluto and its largest moon, Charon, are two of the best-known Kuiper Belt objects.
Pluto possesses an atmosphere, haze and seasons. It also has geological activity on its surface and may conceal an ocean beneath its surface. In addition to Charon, it hosts four other moons: Nix, Hydra, Styx and Kerberos. The Webb data will complement observations made by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft.
Eris: Nearly the size of Pluto, Eris is the second largest known dwarf planet in the solar system. At its farthest point, mysterious Eris is more than 97 times farther from the Sun than Earth. Because of its distance, it is difficult to observe, but the JWST will give scientists a way to figure out what kinds of ice are on its surface.
Sedna: With its deep red hue, Sedna actually lies beyond the main Kuiper Belt. It takes about 11,400 years to complete an orbit around the Sun, and the farthest point in that highly elongated orbit is estimated to be 940 times Earth's distance from the Sun.
Haumea: This large, rapidly rotating body is egg-shaped, and scientists would like to know why. In addition to moons, it also appears to have a ring system. With the JWST, scientists hope to learn more about how those rings were formed.
Chariklo: The largest of the so-called centaurs, Chariklo is also the first asteroid found to have a ring system. It was the fifth ring system found in our solar system, after Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune. The rings are believed to be between two and four miles wide.
Another program, called Target of Opportunity, will observe a Kuiper Belt object passing in front of a star. Called occultation, this type of observation can reveal the size of the object .
The few spacecraft that have passed through the Kuiper Belt have only been able to study these mysterious objects for a very short time. With the JWST, astronomers can study more Kuiper Belt objects over an extended period of time. The result will be new information about the early stages of our solar system's history.
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