The Rarest Kind Of Solar System

Out of all the different kinds of solar systems, ours is the rarest. Simulations and surveys of other planets tell us that this one is by far the most common, where all the planets are about the same size and mass, like peas in a pod. So, how did our solar system get like this with all the smaller ones closer in and all the bigger ones farther out? The leading theory has to do with Jupiter. We think it was the first planet to form out of the swirling clouds of gas and dust around our sun. And it got pulled inwards by gas plowing through and clearing out material. And then came Saturn. And it inched close enough to Jupiter that the two became synced. And that kept Jupiter from moving in any closer than here, about where Mars is today. They played this tugofwar with the rest of the dust disc, eventually reversing their direction and pulling them back out. But in the inner solar system, only crumbs were left to form smaller planets like Earth and Mars. Yeah, we're cosmic crumbs. Sorry. And we've looked around at lots of other solar systems, and it seems like we're the odd one out. To learn more, subscribe.