New research by a duo of French astronomers reveals that small perturbations in Mercury's orbit could result in Mars literally getting the boot from our brotherhood of planets, being flung out of the solar system thanks to the dynamics of a chaotic system.
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In what the authors describe as their most interesting simulation—one where Mercury's axis was decreased by 468 mm (18.4 in)— Mars and Earth had a close encounter, passing within 794 km of one another.
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