If you’ve seen illustrations or models of the solar system, maybe you noticed that all the planets orbit the sun in more or less the same plane, traveling in the same direction.
But what is above and below that plane? And why are the planets’ orbits aligned like this, in a flat pancake, rather than each one traveling in a completely different plane?
Professor of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences Jeff Moersch works with robotic spacecraft such as rovers and orbiters. When he sends them out to explore the solar system, it’s important for him and his colleagues to understand the 3D map of our space neighborhood. Moersch answered the question “What is below Earth, since space is present in every direction?” for The Conversation’s Curious Kids series. Read the full article on The Conversation.
UT is a member of The Conversation, an independent source for news articles and informed analysis written by the academic community and edited by journalists for the general public. Through this partnership, we seek to provide a better understanding of the important work of our researchers. Read more of our articles published by The Conversation on the UT News page.
—
MEDIA CONTACT:
Stacy Estep (865-974-8304, sestep3@utk.edu)
