Tidally detached exomoon
{{Short description|Planet that was formerly a moon of another planet}}
Tidally detached exomoons, also known as orphaned exomoons{{cite journal|last1=Metzger|first1=Brian D.|last2=Stone|first2=Nicholas C.|last3=Martinez|first3=Miguel|date=20 June 2019|title=Orphaned Exomoons: Tidal Detachment and Evaporation Following an Exoplanet-Star Collision|journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society|volume=489|issue=4|pages=5119|language=en|arxiv=1906.08788|doi=10.1093/mnras/stz2464|doi-access=free |bibcode=2019MNRAS.489.5119M|s2cid=195316956}} or ploonets, are hypothetical exoplanets that were formerly exomoons of another planet, before being ejected from their orbits around their parent planets by tidal forces during planetary migration, and becoming planets in their own right.{{Cite journal|last1=Sucerquia|first1=Mario|last2=Alvarado-Montes|first2=Jaime A.|last3=Zuluaga|first3=Jorge I.|last4=Cuello|first4=Nicolas|last5=Giuppone|first5=Cristian|date=27 June 2019|title=Ploonets: formation, evolution, and detectability of tidally detached exomoons|journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society|volume=489|issue=2|pages=2313|language=en|bibcode=2019MNRAS.489.2313S|arxiv=1906.11400|doi=10.1093/mnras/stz2110|doi-access=free |s2cid=195700030}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/deep-space/a28353404/what-are-ploonets/|title=They're Not Moons. They're Not Planets. They're Ploonets.|last=Grossman|first=David|date=10 July 2019|website=Popular Mechanics|language=en-US|access-date=12 July 2019}} As of {{currentyear}}, no tidally detached moons have yet been definitively detected, but they are believed to be likely to exist around other stars, and potentially detectable by photometric methods. Researchers at Columbia University have suggested that a disrupting detached exomoon may be causing the unusual fluctuations in brightness exhibited by Tabby's Star.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sciencealert.com/a-new-explanation-for-tabby-s-star-a-melting-ploonet|title=There's a New Explanation For Mysterious Tabby's Star: A Melting Ploonet|last=Starr|first=Michelle |date=18 September 2019 |website=ScienceAlert|language=en-gb|access-date=19 September 2019}}
History
The term ploonet, a blend of the words planet and moon, Astronomy Magazine, [http://www.astronomy.com/news/2019/07/ploonets-when-a-planets-moon-goes-rogue "Ploonets: When a planet's moon goes rogue"], Jake Parks, 15 July 2019 How Stuff Works Magazine, [https://science.howstuffworks.com/ploonets.htm "Ploonets: When Moons Become Planets"], Patrick J. Kiger, 23 July 2019 was first used in a 2019 paper in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sciencealert.com/this-paper-is-trying-to-make-ploonets-a-thing-and-we-are-here-for-it|title=Scientists Are Trying to Make 'Ploonets' a Thing, And We Are Here For It|last=Starr|first=Michelle |date=10 July 2019 |website=ScienceAlert|language=en-gb|access-date=12 July 2019}}{{cite journal|last1=Sucerquia|first1=Mario|last2=Alvarado-Montes|first2=Jaime A.|last3=Zuluaga|first3=Jorge I.|last4=Cuello|first4=Nicolas|last5=Giuppone|first5=Cristian|date=27 June 2019|title=Ploonets: formation, evolution, and detectability of tidally detached exomoons|journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society|volume=489|issue=2|pages=2313–2322|arxiv=1906.11400|language=en|doi=10.1093/mnras/stz2110|doi-access=free |bibcode=2019MNRAS.489.2313S|s2cid=195700030}} It received attention from mainstream media sources,{{Cite web|url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/2208411-exomoons-that-run-away-from-their-planets-could-become-ploonets/|title=Exomoons that run away from their planets could become 'ploonets'|last=Whyte|first=Chelsea|date=4 July 2019|work=New Scientist |access-date=12 July 2019}}{{cite news |last=Strickland |first=Ashley |title=Wandering moons called 'ploonets' could be the culprits behind astronomical mysteries |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/17/world/ploonets-moon-astronomy-mystery-scn-trnd/index.html |date=17 July 2019 |work=CNN News |access-date=17 July 2019 }} with CNET calling it "charmingly goofy".{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnet.com/news/astronomers-discover-miniature-runaway-moons-theyve-dubbed-ploonets/|title=Ploonets, hell yeah. Runaway moons get a charmingly goofy name|last=Kooser|first=Amanda |date=10 July 2019 |website=CNET|language=en|access-date=12 July 2019}}
See also
- {{annotated link|Subsatellite}}
- {{annotated link|Rogue planet}}
- {{annotated link|Rogue black hole}}
- {{annotated link|Exoplanet}}
- {{annotated link|Exomoon}}
- {{annotated link|Kozai mechanism}}
- {{annotated link|Poynting–Robertson effect}}