Researchers have discovered the Neptune Ridge, a planet-filled region located between the Neptune Desert and the Savanna. This discovery sheds light on how planets migrate and evolve in different environments. A new ‘map’ of distant planets has been published by scientists at the University of Warwick; This map found a planetary ridge in deep space that separates desert planets from more populous savannahs.

Researchers from Warwick and other universities are studying Neptune’s outer planets; These planets have similar characteristics to our Neptune but orbit outside our solar system. Scientists have discovered a new area called “Neptune Ridge” between the “Neptune Desert” and the “Neptune Savanna”.

Characteristics of Neptune desert and savanna

Desert planets are very rare because intense radiation has eroded their atmospheres to the point of destruction, turning these planets into bare rocky cores.

Savannah is an area located away from intense radiation. Environmental conditions are more suitable in this region, allowing planets to maintain their atmospheres for millions of years.

Between these two regions, researchers discovered a new cluster called a ridge, which contains a large concentration of planets.

Current evidence suggests that many of the planets in the belt may have migrated from their birthplace through a mechanism called high eccentric tidal migration, which can move planets closer to their stars at any stage of their lives.

Two types of planetary migration

In contrast, planets in the savannah may have been introduced by another type of migration, called disk migration, which occurred immediately after planet formation.

Therefore, these two systems that control the movement of the planets live in different ways in the savanna and the desert. A few desert planets may be rare extremes that push the boundaries of these broad patterns.

David Armstrong, Warwick Assistant Professor of Physics, said: “Our work to observe this new structure in space is crucial as it helps us map the landscape of an exoplanet.

“As scientists, we are always trying to understand why planets are in this situation and how they got to this position. “The discovery of Neptune’s back helps answer these questions by revealing some of the geography of the outer planets and is an extremely exciting discovery.”