Astronomers Believe They've Discovered Why the Solar System Tilts

Astronomers believe a huge planet may exist on the edge of the solar system, and it may have caused the entire solar system to tilt. 

California Institute of Technology scientists reported earlier this year that "Planet Nine" probably exists beyond Pluto, around 19 billion miles away. They believe it's ten times the size of Earth.

Those scientists also now believe the mysterious planet, which hasn't been seen, could be responsible for the unusual tilt of the solar system in relation to the sun.

"It's such a deep-rooted mystery and so difficult to explain that people just don't talk about it," said Mike Brown, professor of planetary astronomy at Caltech, in reference to the tilt, according to The Telegraph.

However, scientists believe they may have solved that mystery and say calculations show Planet Nine has a highly tilted orbit, which could lead to a "wobble" with the solar system. 

"Because Planet Nine is so massive and has an orbit tilted compared to the other planets, the solar system has no choice but to slowly twist out of alignment," explained Elizabeth Bailey, a graduate student at Caltech and lead author of the study of Planet Nine in relation to the tilt of the solar system.

Brown and Dr Konstantin Batygin, an assistant professor of planetary science at Caltech, first proposed the existence of Planet Nine, after they discovered 13 objects in an area beyond Pluto were traveling together like they were in the gravitational pull of a huge body.  

Scientists downgraded the "original" ninth planet, Pluto, to a minor planet or "plutoid" in 2006.