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THE KUIPER BELT POPULATION HAS AN OUTER EDGE AT ABOUT 50 AU. SEDNA AND OUR RECENT DISCOVERY 2012 VP113 ARE THE ONLY KNOWN OBJECTS WITH PERIHELION SIGNIFICANTLY BEYOND THIS EDGE AT ABOUT 80 AU. THESE INNER OORT CLOUD OBJECTS OBTAINED THEIR ORBITS WHEN THE SOLAR SYSTEM WAS VASTLY DIFFERENT FROM NOW. THERE ARE SEVERAL THEORIES AS TO THE ORIGIN OF THESE OBJECTS THAT CAN ONLY BE TESTED BY FINDING MORE INNER OORT CLOUD OBJECTS. THIS POPULATION IS LIKELY LARGER THAN THE KUIPER BELT WHICH WOULD MAKE IT THE LARGESTSMALL BODY RESERVOIR IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM BUT PREVIOUS SURVEYS DID NOT GO FAINT ENOUGH DID NOT HAVE THE REQUIRED LONG CADENCE OR COVERED TOO SMALL OF SKY AREA TO FIND THEM. THE DYNAMICAL AND PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF OBJECTS IN THIS REGION OFFER KEY CONSTRAINTS ON THE FORMATION AND EVOLUTION OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM. SEVERAL THEORIES ON THE INNER OORT CLOUD FORMATION HAVE BEEN PUT FORTH AND ALL ARETESTABLE BY DISCOVERING MORE OBJECTS. THESE THEORIES RANGE FROM THE INNER OORT CLOUD OBJECTS FORMING FROM A ROGUE OR UNSEEN PLANET SCATTERING FROM STELLAR ENCOUNTERS IN THE SUNS BIRTH CLUSTER OR EVEN CAPTURE OF EXTRA-SOLAR PLANETS. UNDERSTANDING THE FORMATION MECHANISM FOR THESE OBJECTS HAS STRONG IMPLICATIONS ON THE SUN'S FORMATION ENVIRONMENT AND OUR SOLAR SYSTEMS EVOLUTION. WE PROPOSE TO SUBSTANTIALLY EXPAND THE KNOWN INNER OORT CLOUD POPULATION WITH A SURVEY SPECIFICALLY TARGETED FOR THE EXTREMELY DISTANT OBJECTS.

$114,443FY2017National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationNASA

Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff AZ

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