Astronomers have long known that planets can orbit stars, but in recent years, they have also discovered that there are planets that do not orbit any star at all. These are known as “rogue planets,” and they are some of the most mysterious objects in the universe.

Rogue planets are thought to form in the same way as regular planets, but they are ejected from their star systems early in their lifetimes. This can happen for a number of reasons, such as a close encounter with another star or a collision with another planet. Once a rogue planet is ejected, it is free to wander through space for billions of years.

Rogue planets are incredibly difficult to detect, as they do not emit any light of their own. However, astronomers have been able to find a handful of rogue planets using a variety of techniques. One method is to look for objects that are moving through space too quickly to be bound to a star. Another method is to look for objects that are emitting infrared radiation, which is a sign that they are still hot from their formation.

In 2023, a new mission called the ‘Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer’ (NEOWISE) will begin searching for rogue planets in our solar system. NEOWISE is a powerful infrared telescope that is capable of detecting objects that are much fainter than previous missions. It is expected to find hundreds of new rogue planets, which will help astronomers to better understand these mysterious objects.

The discovery of rogue planets has raised a number of questions about the formation and evolution of planets. For example, how common are rogue planets? How did they form? And what is their ultimate fate? These are just some of the questions that astronomers hope to answer in the years to come.

©️ Rocky Mountain Dispatch 2023