Universe Today Podcast [Q&A] Seeing the Oort Cloud, Rogue Planet Nearby, Knocking the Moon Away
Jun 19, 2025
What if a giant asteroid knocked the Moon out of its orbit? A telescope's power required to spot the elusive Oort cloud is discussed, alongside the tantalizing possibility of a rogue planet lurking in our Solar System. The podcast dives into dark matter theories and whether we could artificially rotate a tidally locked planet. With insights into time dilation and the challenges of astronomical observation, listeners are treated to a cosmic Q&A that sparks curiosity about the universe beyond our own.
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Meteor Impact Alters Moon Orbit
- A giant meteor the size of a dwarf planet could alter the Moon's orbit by impact.
- Such impacts, or gravitational experiences, cause the Moon's orbit to evolve over billions of years.
Dark Matter Is Not Regular Matter
- Dark matter is not regular matter like failed stars or planets as it interacts gravitationally.
- Visible matter accounts for only one-tenth of mass, so dark matter must be exotic and invisible.
Oort Cloud Observation Limits
- Current telescopes are far too weak to see Oort cloud objects thousands of AU away.
- We can only detect them when they fall inward as comets, due to vast distances and gaps.