Uranus was hit by a Super Earth

[ProtoJeb21]

A new study came out this week, which used advanced computer simulations to determine what caused the weird tilt, magnetic field, and more of the planet Uranus. The results heavily suggested that the planet was struck at a glancing blow by a Super-Earth about twice as big as our own planet. Not only did this impact change Uranus’ axis, but it also likely messed up its magnetosphere, created its moons, wiped out any original moons, and prevented internal heat from escaping. A complete article is linked below. 

https://amp.space.com/41076-uranus-weird-til-icy-rock-crash.html

*Prepares for the onslaught of Uranus jokes in the comments*

[kerbiloid]

Spoiler

This raises a question: what if collide Jool and Kerbin in KSP, in the name of Kopernicus.

The only thing I've found is outdated (KSP 0.18.2., Planet Factory)

 

 

Edited July 6, 2018 by kerbiloid

[cubinator]

I wonder if it's possible the core could still be more or less aligned with the ecliptic while the atmosphere above rotates along a different axis. This could explain why the magnetic field is still oriented normally.

[StrandedonEarth]

I wonder if this collision could have spawned the Pluto-Charon system, with a nudge from Jool Jupiter and/or Neptune

[peadar1987]

3 minutes ago, StrandedonEarth said:

I wonder if this collision could have spawned the Pluto-Charon system, with a nudge from Jool Jupiter and/or Neptune

It seems pretty unlikely, there are plenty of Pluto-like objects out there, and their composition seems pretty different to that of Uranus.

[RealKerbal3x]

25 minutes ago, StrandedonEarth said:

Jool Jupiter

Hah, made that mistake when I was talking to my friends once. Got some strange looks.

[Scotius]

Time for a new automated mission to outer Solar System. Uranus probe. Now that should cause a hurricane of bad puns LOL

[cubinator]

10 minutes ago, Scotius said:

Time for a new automated mission to outer Solar System. Uranus probe. Now that should cause a hurricane of bad puns LOL

We should just call the planet "Caelus" instead. Petition the IAU?

[Scotius]

I don't know... It sounds awkward. Besides, only anglophones have this problem In Polish language it's simply Uran - no connection to any part of human anatomy whatsoever. I believe astronomers and interested part of the public from other language groups would protest  such change vigorously. And tell anglophones to "Grow up already."

[Vanamonde]

Quote

"Grow up already."  

Speaking of which, leave the crass jokes for other parts of the forum, please. 

[cubinator]

What happened to the other planet? A grazing blow surely wouldn't have destroyed it completely, especially against a ball of gas rather than rock? Why isn't there an Earth-sized planet in the outer solar system? These answers are creating so many more questions, and I love it.

Edited July 6, 2018 by cubinator

[wumpus]

59 minutes ago, cubinator said:

What happened to the other planet? A grazing blow surely wouldn't have destroyed it completely, especially against a ball of gas rather than rock? Why isn't there an Earth-sized planet in the outer solar system? These answers are creating so many more questions, and I love it.

It would have remained in an orbit that intersected with Uranus's orbit until collision, capture, or ejection.  This might take even longer than you might expect because said orbit would be extremely unlikely to be on the elliptic, nor would subsequent orbital variations be all that near the elliptic (so roughly a three body problem with the Sun, Uranus, and "super Earth").  Remember that Uranus already has an orbit of 84 years and if "Super Earth" has a higher apoapsis that that we might not see it for quite some time.

[Lisias]

What leads to my question: How a "super earth" got into this mess?

Rocky planets are (at least to my knowledge) formed near the Sun. Something very unusual should had happened in order to expand an inner planet's orbit to there.

Perhaps a rogue exoplanet would make more sense?

[Scotius]

If it was a young protoplanet, then it's possible it was kicked out of the inner parts of the Solar System by Jupiter or Saturn. And on the way to become a rogue planet it had bad luck of getting too close to proto-Uranus. Who knows where it remnants might orbit now?

[cubinator]

1 hour ago, Lisias said:

What leads to my question: How a "super earth" got into this mess?

Rocky planets are (at least to my knowledge) formed near the Sun. Something very unusual should had happened in order to expand an inner planet's orbit to there.

Perhaps a rogue exoplanet would make more sense?

Well, keep in mind that Uranus and Neptune are kind of like "super super-Earths" themselves, so I find it believable that something a little smaller could have been out there too. I don't think a rogue exoplanet makes more sense at all, because interstellar space is really big.

[Lisias]

1 hour ago, cubinator said:

Well, keep in mind that Uranus and Neptune are kind of like "super super-Earths" themselves, 

Yeah…  As it appears, I've been reading articles from the very authors that "further suggest that the term Super-Earth might be limited to rocky planets without a significant atmosphere, or planets that have not just atmospheres but also solid surfaces or oceans with a sharp boundary between liquid and atmosphere".  

Sorry about the noise.

[Brotoro]

4 minutes ago, Lisias said:

Yeah…  As it appears, I've been reading articles from the very authors that "further suggest that the term Super-Earth might be limited to rocky planets without a significant atmosphere, or planets that have not just atmospheres but also solid surfaces or oceans with a sharp boundary between liquid and atmosphere".  

Sorry about the noise.

Doesn't sound like noise to me. I would expect the term 'Super Earth' to be reserved for rocky terrestrial planets, and not used for large icy planetoids of the type that formed out beyond the snow line and were involved in the forming of the Jovian planets. 

[magnemoe]

4 hours ago, Scotius said:

If it was a young protoplanet, then it's possible it was kicked out of the inner parts of the Solar System by Jupiter or Saturn. And on the way to become a rogue planet it had bad luck of getting too close to proto-Uranus. Who knows where it remnants might orbit now?

Don't see any other options than kicked out of solar system, an encounter will either lower Ap and increase Pe or the opposite, target will always intercept Uranus orbit. 
If Ap get to high it will escape, yes it might have been kicked out by another later encounter with Jupiter or Saturn. 
Yes it could also impact them or break apart. 
Note that this is so masive it should also disrupt moons around Uranus and other planets it passed close to. 
An final option who might make sense is that the impact or later events broke it up into an comet swarm. 
 

[Bill Phil]

10 hours ago, cubinator said:

We should just call the planet "Caelus" instead. Petition the IAU?

Why not Ouranos? Uranus is the romanification (or something) of Ouranos. We get to keep the name, technically, and we lose the jokes.

[kerbiloid]

12 hours ago, Scotius said:

Time for a new automated mission to outer Solar System.

Looks like they are planning something like that.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NASA_Uranus_orbiter_and_probe
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uranus_Pathfinder

9 hours ago, Lisias said:

What leads to my question: How a "super earth" got into this mess?

Just got in it with a bad crowd.

***

A funny thing. Wiki says, Uranus rocky core estimated mass is 0.5-3.7 Earth masses.
So, if a 2 M_Earth rocky planet collides with a Protouranus, it weights at least like its own core.
So, either it is itself that Uranus, or there are two Uranus cores, but one with thick giant atmosphere, while another one - without.
As they are at the same distance from Sun, how could that happen?
So, probably not a Superearth hit Uranus, but a collision of two Half-Uranuses? Two ice giant halflings.

1 hour ago, Bill Phil said:

Why not Ouranos? Uranus is the romanification (or something) of Ouranos. We get to keep the name, technically, and we lose the jokes.

Or drop that -us, at last.
Which another planet has this Latin cosplay?
Mercury? Neptune? Very Latin names.

Edited July 7, 2018 by kerbiloid

[_Augustus_]

19 hours ago, wumpus said:

It would have remained in an orbit that intersected with Uranus's orbit until collision, capture, or ejection.  This might take even longer than you might expect because said orbit would be extremely unlikely to be on the elliptic, nor would subsequent orbital variations be all that near the elliptic (so roughly a three body problem with the Sun, Uranus, and "super Earth").  Remember that Uranus already has an orbit of 84 years and if "Super Earth" has a higher apoapsis that that we might not see it for quite some time.

Planet 9.

[kerbiloid]

Spoiler

We should recall the Greek mythology and call this impactor Sickle.

 

[insert_name]

There certainly to have been a lot more planets in the past, with this impactor, theia, and the fifth gas giant from the nice model. Wonder if any fragments would be easy to identify

[cubinator]

11 minutes ago, insert_name said:

There certainly to have been a lot more planets in the past, with this impactor, theia, and the fifth gas giant from the nice model. Wonder if any fragments would be easy to identify

16 Psyche seems to be part of a planetary core. 

[Scotius]

Most of M-type asteroids (to which Psyche belongs) seem to be fragments of differentiated bodies. Solar System in its infancy must have been an action packed place. More grinding and collisions than in a mosh pit