A new study has revealed that the dwarf planet Eris, located in the distant Kuiper Belt, may be much squishier than expected. This discovery could provide us with valuable information about the formation and evolution of our Solar System.

Using computer models, researchers have found that Eris may be composed of a soft, icy mantle made up of frozen nitrogen and methane, surrounded by a rock and dust core. This would make Eris much more malleable than previously thought, and could explain why it has a much less elliptical orbit than other large Kuiper Belt Objects. It could also help us understand how planets and moons form out of the icy debris left over from the formation of our Solar System.

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source: Phys.org