Basic Information
Tyche is the name that has been given to a hypothetical planet located in the Oort Cloud of the Solar System. The name is taken from the Greek goddess of Luck, and was meant to differentiate this planet from Nemesis, the hypothetical dinosaur-killing star, who was named after Tyche's sister.
Astrophysicists first proposed the existence of Tyche in 1999, to explain the bias in the orbits of some very long period comets. They speculate that the planet, if it exists, would be a gas giant with up to twice the mass of Jupiter.
Tyche might be a rogue planet captured by our solar system and not formed with it.
NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) telescope has been scanning the area of space where Tyche is thought to be located, and analysis of its data might confirm the planet's existence.
See Also
Sources
Game and Story Use
- In a Science Fiction campaign, an expedition could be sent to Tyche to uncover its mysteries
- Is it a captured planet, or was it formed with the rest of the Solar System?
- Is it the home of the Fungi from Yuggoth?