What I mean is, would it be possible to have two planets occupying the same orbit around the sun, and rotating around each other? Kind of like Earth and the moon, only it would be another planet in the moon's place, the same size as Earth.
2007-11-12 13:48:41 · 8 answers · asked by Antique Silver Buttons 5 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
I'm not sure if they would orbit around each other and the sun if they had the same mass. If they did, it would drastically change the way that Earth is. The moon keeps the slant of the earth's towards or away from the sun at about 23.5 degrees (creating the seasons) and controls the ocean's tides. If the moon had the same mass of the Earth this would drastically change that and could (but not necessarily) make both planets uninhabitable (with life as we know it). The planets would also block out the sun completely from each other at some times, which could also affect life.
2007-11-12 15:56:30 · answer #1 · answered by Felicity H 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Another Earth orbiting the sun in the same orbit as our Earth would not be stable - planetary orbits are not perfect circles and wander over time.
But having 2 Earths orbiting each other instead of the Earth and the Moon would be possible (though that did not occur in our solar system).
However, the physics of celestial mechanics and planetary formation physics show that the likelihood of 2 planets of the same mass and diameter forming close enough to each other to orbit a common centre of gravity is slim.
They might form as a planetary binary, but their mutual gravity could toss one planet out of the solar system or into another orbit.
2007-11-12 14:00:49 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Yes, it would be possible to have a double planet system with two planets in orbit around each other as they orbit a star. If the two planets were of equal mass, they would revolve around a point in space that was mid-way between them.
2007-11-12 13:54:18 · answer #3 · answered by Nature Boy 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Probably. You can have two Suns, both the same size and orbiting around each other. There are many such stars, called binary stars, so why not binary planets? There is no reason they could not exist, but there may be reasons that they would not form.
2007-11-12 14:13:01 · answer #4 · answered by campbelp2002 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Very possible, in theory the system Vega might have 1 or 2 planets that are habitable I hear.
2007-11-12 14:16:49 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
well then that would be cool cuz then you can have all the bad people on one earth and all good people in the other. that would take a long time to bring other people and what if the other earth had bad stuff that can kill us?
2007-11-12 13:55:52 · answer #6 · answered by cutemixyangel200 2 · 0⤊ 4⤋
probaly half of the people in the world would be living in one world and half of anothere people in the other world, God can create another world if he wants , but there are weird things in the outerspace that hasnt been discovered.
2007-11-12 13:52:54 · answer #7 · answered by TACO BELL ! 3 · 0⤊ 4⤋
if there were two earths it would be twice the maddness
2007-11-12 13:56:28 · answer #8 · answered by pretty brown eyez 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋