View source for Astronomy:Tidally detached exomoon

{{Short description|Planet that was formerly a moon of another planet}}
'''Tidally detached exomoons''', also known as '''orphaned exomoons<ref>{{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|bibcode=2019MNRAS.489.5119M|s2cid=195316956}}</ref>''' or '''ploonets''',<ref name=":0" /> are hypothetical [[Astronomy:Exoplanet|exoplanet]]s that were formerly [[Astronomy:Exomoon|exomoon]]s of another planet, before being ejected from their orbits around their parent planets by [[Physics:Tidal force|tidal force]]s during [[Astronomy:Planetary migration|planetary migration]], and becoming planets in their own right.<ref>{{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|s2cid=195700030}}</ref><ref>{{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}}</ref> 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 [[Astronomy:Photometry|photometric]] methods. Researchers at [[Organization:Columbia University|Columbia University]] have suggested that a disrupting detached exomoon may be causing the unusual fluctuations in brightness exhibited by [[Astronomy:Tabby's Star|Tabby's Star]].<ref>{{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}}</ref>

==History==
The term ''ploonet'', a blend of the words ''planet'' and ''moon'',<ref> 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 </ref><ref> How Stuff Works Magazine, [https://science.howstuffworks.com/ploonets.htm "Ploonets: When Moons Become Planets"], Patrick J. Kiger, 23 July 2019 </ref> was first used in a 2019 paper in the ''[[Organization:Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society|Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society]]''.<ref name=":0">{{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}}</ref><ref>{{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|bibcode=2019MNRAS.489.2313S|s2cid=195700030}}</ref> It received attention from mainstream media sources,<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{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}}</ref><ref name="CNN-20170717">{{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 }}</ref> with CNET calling it "charmingly goofy".<ref>{{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}}</ref>

== See also ==
* {{annotated link|Astronomy:Subsatellite}}
* {{annotated link|Astronomy:Rogue planet}}
* {{annotated link|Astronomy:Rogue black hole}}
* {{annotated link|Astronomy:Exoplanet}}
* {{annotated link|Astronomy:Exomoon}}
* {{annotated link|Astronomy:Kozai mechanism}}
* {{annotated link|Astronomy:Poynting–Robertson effect}}

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

{{Exoplanet}}

[[Category:Exomoons]]



{{Sourceattribution|Tidally detached exomoon}}