NASA Finds 15,000 AU Spiral in Oort Cloud

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NASA's Pleiades supercomputer has discovered a spiral structure within the Oort Cloud that makes it look like a miniature galaxy

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The spiral arms stretch 15,000 astronomical units in length, running perpendicular to the Milky Way's galactic plane

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"We found that some comets in the inner Oort cloud form a long-lasting spiral structure. The universe seems to like spirals!" says Luke Dones from Southwest Research Institute.

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Galactic tides—gravitational forces from our Milky Way—have shaped this cosmic formation over the 4.5 billion years since our solar system formed.

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Though only a fraction of the Oort Cloud's comets participate in this spiral pattern, that still amounts to billions of icy objects.

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Voyager 1, despite traveling a million miles daily, won't reach the Oort Cloud for 300 years and would need 300,000 years to cross it completely.

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Scientists hope to detect this elusive structure using thermal emissions from dust with specialized telescopes or through the upcoming Legacy Survey of Space and Time.

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Understanding this spiral structure could unlock secrets about comet origins and the complex dance between our solar system and the Milky Way galaxy.

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[{"selector":"#anim-d1f55c96-cd4d-480a-8818-ea46718f71bb","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":200,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.4, 0.4, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-0a8c2e74-2eb7-41f2-936c-e59c167ff482","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":200,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-914811a3-a65b-4051-8009-4ec673e9aa39","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(-114.50152%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":200,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-76e9810a-71d2-4d2a-b039-b2b9c5dd551a","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":700,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-0fbb8214-b337-4d80-8da5-c575bdd134fa","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(115.23810%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":700,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Seven- Planet Alignment on February 28; Next in 2040 Learn more