What is "Planet X" and will it really be close enough to Earth to cause problems in the year 2012?

Question

Or is the "Planet X" theory just another part of the 2012 craziness?

Answer 1

My vote's for craziness. But then, I am firmly convinced that nothing out of the ordinary is going to happen in 2012. All that noise is just people trying to sell you something.

Okay, a bit of history on "Planet X": It was first speculated to exist due to perceived discrepancies in the orbits of the gas giants. If it existed, it was supposed to be a large planet somewhere out beyond the orbit of Neptune. Keep in mind that Planet X was postulated before the discovery of Pluto (although it is interesting to note that Pluto was discovered as a result of the search for Planet X). The problem was that the measurements which seemed to indicate its existence were faulty. When new measurements were made using better instruments in the 1980s, the discrepancies vanished. So did any serious scientific hope of finding a large planet orbiting our Sun beyond the orbit of Neptune.

So, Planet X doesn't exist. But let's just suppose for a moment that it did. It still wouldn't threaten Earth; not in 2012, or ever.

None of the known planets get even remotely close to Earth. Even at its closest approach, Venus is still tens of millions of kilometers away, way too far out to be any sort of a threat to life on Earth. Let's pretend, though, that this Planet X does exist and orbits the Sun on an EXTREMELY elliptical orbit that allows it to threaten Earth at its perihelion and swing far enough out on its aphelion that it's not easily detectable. In order for it to do so, it would have an orbital period of decades, at least, if not centuries. That means that it would take a LOOOOOOOONG time to reach the inner solar system. That means that if it were currently inbound, with a rendezvous with Earth five years from now, it would be known to amateur astronomers all over the world. A planet simply can't slip into the inner solar system and not be seen.

Needless to say (I hope), there is no such planet racing into the inner solar system. And don't believe anybody who says that the government is covering it up...as I've just pointed out, there are millions of amateur astronomers who would see it coming and who would blow the whistle long before the government could effectively silence them.

The bottom line is: there's no Planet X, nothing cataclysmic will happen in 2012, and I wish everybody would stop worrying about it already!

Answer 2

Any suspected planet that has not been seen is called planet X. Pluto was planet X until it was discovered. When people say planet X in connection with 2012 or any other end to the world nonsense are usually talking about a mythical planet (they say it is real) that is in a very elongated orbit and only comes close enough to see every few thousand years. Some comets do this. In fact most comets are in orbits like that. But no planet size body has ever been seen in such an orbit.

Answer 3

This planet x thing could very well be true.If you study ancient civilizations,A good number of them had astrological knowledge that we didn't have until the 19th century.And alot of these people have the same stories and knowledge about this mysterious planet.I think that it isn't just coincidence that these cultures which were separated by oceans could have the same descriptions of the planets in our system with out there being some truth to it.Its widely discredited because we don't want to admit that these ancient people had a better understanding of our solar system than we do with our modern technology.Anyway,planet or not,there is a solar storm that will hit us around the 2012 timeframe that may or may not have negative effects on this planet.And a planetary alignment that may or may no do the same.These last two have nothing to do with the mayan prediction these are coming from actual scientist.When and if this planet does come down this way it is believed by some that it is viewable in the southern hemisphere by telescope as a red planet in the sky and its supposed to be viewable by the naked eye by 2010,if it is real

Answer 4

When the planet Neptune was discovered, astronomers noted that there were some eccentricities in its orbit.

They propsed the existance of a "Planet X" further out to explain these eccentricities.

A young lad by the name of Clyde William Tombaugh decided to search for this "Planet X". His method was very archaic (the "blink" method) and basically involved taking pictures of the same portion of the sky, a month apart, and then placing the photographs side by side and looking back and forth between them VERY quickly. If there was a star that "jumped", it meant it was moving and hence, a planet.

Well, he did find a point of light that jumped and hence the discovery of the planet (now dwarf planet) Pluto in 1930.

So, there is no real Planet X. And yes, it's all part of the 2012 craziness.

Answer 5

The 2012 craziness was due to the end of a Mayan Calendar Era in that year. Planet X seems to have wandered into the scenario. I don't know exactly what Planet X is.

Answer 6

There is no Planet X. We know all of the major objects in Earth's vicinity, and none pose any threat in the year 2012.

Answer 7

Im a T.A. for 5th grade. We just got new text books this year (written by u.c. berkley)...

anywho, it refers to the now dwarf planet (on the other side of pluto) as "planet x" in the preview edition from last year.

So, If ur looking for theory, read the above questions, but It could also be this. A general term for something not yet classified. (of course now it is... dwarf *laughs* )