Imagine astronomers discover a new icy object in the Outer Solar System that is on a highly elliptical orbit. Considering the migration of Neptune and its effects on the Kuiper Belt and scattered disk, what could be inferred about the object's origin and its potential future interactions with the planets?

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Seekh · Accepted Answer

Because the object’s orbit is very elongated, it likely started in the Kuiper Belt and was pushed outward by Neptune’s migration, which scattered many bodies into more eccentric paths; the same process that created the scattered disk would explain its current shape. The object's orbit shows it was probably nudged by Neptune’s early movement, so it probably originated beyond 30 astronomical units but was later pulled into a more distant, tilted trajectory. In the future it could swing back into the inner solar system, where encounters with Neptune or even Uranus might further increase its eccentricity or tilt it, or it could be sent on a comet-like path toward the Sun. For example, a Kuiper‑belt dwarf planet that Neptune shoved into a 3:1 resonance could later be ejected into a highly elongated orbit, making it a potential new comet. Thus, the object's highly elliptical path suggests a history of Neptune’s migration and hints that it may experience future close encounters with the giant planets.

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