From: Michael S. Lorrey (retroman@turbont.net)
Date: Tue Oct 10 2000 - 13:21:21 MDT
Damien Broderick wrote:
>
> An amusing conceit:
>
> http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2000/10/001006075617.htm
>
> >Scientists have discovered 18 planet-like objects, drifting free of
> > any central star, in a region of the Orion constellation. If the
> > young, cool bodies are in fact planets, these free floaters may
> > pose a considerable challenge to current theories about how
> > planets form.
>
> ...
> >The team determined the objects' mass by plugging their data into
> > models of planet and brown dwarf formation. Researchers
> > generally classify bodies less than 13 times the mass of Jupiter
> > (13 Jupiter masses) as planets, and bodies between 13 and 75
> > Jupiter masses as brown dwarfs.
> >
> > The model results vary a bit depending on the objects' age,
> but are
> > mostly well within the range for planets. Sigma Orionis is
> > probably 5 million years old, so if the objects are equally old,
> > they are probably 8-15 Jupiter masses. If they are only 1 My, the
> > fainter ones could be as small as 5 Jupiter masses.
>
> Uh, Robert, I don't suppose...
White dwarf Dyson haloes??? Jupiter brains?
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