Oort cloud
E19351
The Oort cloud is a distant, spherical shell of icy bodies surrounding the Solar System, thought to be the source of many long-period comets.
Aliases (3)
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
hypothetical astronomical structure
→
reservoir of comets → |
| alsoKnownAs |
Oort cloud
→
surface form: "Öpik–Oort cloud"
|
| category |
comet cloud
→
outer Solar System object → |
| composition |
cometary nuclei
→
icy bodies → |
| contains |
dormant comets
→
long-period comets → |
| distanceScale | interstellar scale → |
| dynamicalRole | reservoir for comets entering inner Solar System → |
| environment | outer heliosphere boundary region → |
| evidenceType | orbits of long-period comets → |
| formationMechanism |
gravitational scattering by giant planets
→
subsequent perturbation by galactic forces → |
| formationOrigin | scattered planetesimals from early Solar System → |
| gravitationallyBoundTo | Sun → |
| hostStar | Sun → |
| influencedBy |
galactic tide
→
molecular clouds → passing stars → |
| innerBoundaryDistanceFromSun |
roughly 2,000 astronomical units
→
roughly 5,000 astronomical units → |
| innerOortCloudAlsoCalled | Hills cloud → |
| liesBeyond |
Kuiper Belt objects
→
surface form: "Kuiper belt"
scattered disc → |
| locatedIn | outer Solar System → |
| mayOverlapWith | local interstellar medium → |
| namedAfter | Jan Oort → |
| observationalStatus | inferred but not directly observed as a whole → |
| orbitalCenter | Solar System barycenter → |
| outerBoundaryDistanceFromSun |
possibly up to about 100,000 astronomical units
→
up to about 50,000 astronomical units → |
| partOf | Solar System → |
| populationEstimate |
hundreds of billions of icy bodies
→
possibly trillions of icy bodies → |
| proposalYear | 1950 → |
| proposedBy | Jan Oort → |
| regionType | trans-Neptunian region → |
| relevance | key to understanding origin of comets → |
| shape | roughly spherical → |
| subdivision |
Oort cloud
→
surface form: "inner Oort cloud"
Oort cloud →
surface form: "outer Oort cloud"
|
| surrounds |
Sun
→
planetary region of the Solar System → |
| thoughtToBe | source of many long-period comets → |
| uncertainty |
exact extent unknown
→
exact mass unknown → |
Referenced by (4)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form: "Öpik–Oort cloud"
this entity surface form: "inner Oort cloud"
this entity surface form: "outer Oort cloud"