(20161) 1996 TR66
Encyclopedia
, also written as 1996 TR66, is a Trans-Neptunian object
(TNO) orbiting beyond Pluto
in the Kuiper belt
. It was discovered on October 8, 1996 by David C. Jewitt
, Chad Trujillo
, Jane X. Luu, and Jun Chen
at the Mauna Kea Observatory
, Hawaii
.
It is in a 1:2 orbital resonance
with Neptune
, so it has been categorized as a twotino, of which it is the earliest discovered.
(average distance from the Sun) near the edge of the classical belt. Both the Minor Planet Center
(MPC) and the Deep Ecliptic Survey
(DES) list this trans-Neptunian object as a twotino. For every one orbit that a twotino makes, Neptune
orbits two times.
1996 TR66 was the first twotino discovered. Near perihelion
, it comes closer to the Sun (28.7AU
) than Neptune does (29.7AU).
Trans-Neptunian object
A trans-Neptunian object is any minor planet in the Solar System that orbits the Sun at a greater distance on average than Neptune.The first trans-Neptunian object to be discovered was Pluto in 1930...
(TNO) orbiting beyond Pluto
Pluto
Pluto, formal designation 134340 Pluto, is the second-most-massive known dwarf planet in the Solar System and the tenth-most-massive body observed directly orbiting the Sun...
in the Kuiper belt
Kuiper belt
The Kuiper belt , sometimes called the Edgeworth–Kuiper belt, is a region of the Solar System beyond the planets extending from the orbit of Neptune to approximately 50 AU from the Sun. It is similar to the asteroid belt, although it is far larger—20 times as wide and 20 to 200 times as massive...
. It was discovered on October 8, 1996 by David C. Jewitt
David C. Jewitt
David C. Jewitt is a professor of astronomy formerly at the University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy, now at UCLA. He was born in 1958 in England, and is a 1979 graduate of the University of London. Jewitt received an M.Sc. and a Ph.D. in astronomy at the California Institute of Technology in...
, Chad Trujillo
Chad Trujillo
Chadwick A. "Chad" Trujillo is an astronomer and the co-discoverer of the dwarf planet Eris.Trujillo works with computer software and has examined the orbits of the numerous trans-Neptunian objects , which is the outer area of the solar system that he specialized in. In late August 2005, it was...
, Jane X. Luu, and Jun Chen
Jun Chen
Jun Chen is a Chinese American astronomer.She obtained her BS at Beijing University in 1990, and obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Hawaii in 1997....
at the Mauna Kea Observatory
Mauna Kea Observatory
The Observatories at Mauna Kea, , are an independent collection of astronomical research facilities located on the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawai'i, USA. The facilities are located in a special land use zone known as the "Astronomy Precinct," which is located in the Mauna Kea...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
It is in a 1:2 orbital resonance
Orbital resonance
In celestial mechanics, an orbital resonance occurs when two orbiting bodies exert a regular, periodic gravitational influence on each other, usually due to their orbital periods being related by a ratio of two small integers. Orbital resonances greatly enhance the mutual gravitational influence of...
with Neptune
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System. Named for the Roman god of the sea, it is the fourth-largest planet by diameter and the third largest by mass. Neptune is 17 times the mass of Earth and is slightly more massive than its near-twin Uranus, which is 15 times...
, so it has been categorized as a twotino, of which it is the earliest discovered.
Twotino
1996 TR66 has a semi-major axisSemi-major axis
The major axis of an ellipse is its longest diameter, a line that runs through the centre and both foci, its ends being at the widest points of the shape...
(average distance from the Sun) near the edge of the classical belt. Both the Minor Planet Center
Minor Planet Center
The Minor Planet Center operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory , which is part of the Center for Astrophysics along with the Harvard College Observatory ....
(MPC) and the Deep Ecliptic Survey
Deep Ecliptic Survey
The Deep Ecliptic Survey is a project to find Kuiper belt objects , using the facilities of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory .The principal investigator is Bob Millis....
(DES) list this trans-Neptunian object as a twotino. For every one orbit that a twotino makes, Neptune
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System. Named for the Roman god of the sea, it is the fourth-largest planet by diameter and the third largest by mass. Neptune is 17 times the mass of Earth and is slightly more massive than its near-twin Uranus, which is 15 times...
orbits two times.
1996 TR66 was the first twotino discovered. Near perihelion
Apsis
An apsis , plural apsides , is the point of greatest or least distance of a body from one of the foci of its elliptical orbit. In modern celestial mechanics this focus is also the center of attraction, which is usually the center of mass of the system...
, it comes closer to the Sun (28.7AU
Astronomical unit
An astronomical unit is a unit of length equal to about or approximately the mean Earth–Sun distance....
) than Neptune does (29.7AU).
External links
- Orbital simulation from JPL (Java) / Ephemeris