Asteroid moon
Encyclopedia
Orbit
In physics, an orbit is the gravitationally curved path of an object around a point in space, for example the orbit of a planet around the center of a star system, such as the Solar System...
s a minor planet
Minor planet
An asteroid group or minor-planet group is a population of minor planets that have a share broadly similar orbits. Members are generally unrelated to each other, unlike in an asteroid family, which often results from the break-up of a single asteroid...
as its natural satellite
Natural satellite
A natural satellite or moon is a celestial body that orbits a planet or smaller body, which is called its primary. The two terms are used synonymously for non-artificial satellites of planets, of dwarf planets, and of minor planets....
. It is thought that many asteroids and 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...
objects may possess moons, in some cases quite substantial in size. Discoveries of minor-planet moons (and binary objects, in general) are important because the determination of their orbits provides estimates on the mass
Mass
Mass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
and density
Density
The mass density or density of a material is defined as its mass per unit volume. The symbol most often used for density is ρ . In some cases , density is also defined as its weight per unit volume; although, this quantity is more properly called specific weight...
of the primary, allowing insights of their physical properties that is generally not otherwise possible. , there are 180 minor planets known to have moons.
Terminology
In addition to the terms satellite and moon, the term binary is sometimes used for minor planets with moons (or triple for minor planets with two moons). If one object is much bigger it is usually referred to as the primary and its companion as secondary. The term double asteroid is sometimes used for systems in which the asteroid and its moon are roughly the same size, while binary tends to be used independently from the relative sizes of the components. When binary minor planets are similar in size, the Minor Planet CenterMinor 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) refers to them as "binary companions
Binary asteroid
A binary asteroid is a system of two asteroids orbiting their common center of mass, in analogy with binary stars. 243 Ida was the first binary asteroid to be identified when the Galileo spacecraft did a flyby in 1993...
" instead of referring to the smaller body as a satellite. A good example of a true binary is the 90 Antiope
90 Antiope
The most remarkable feature of Antiope is that it consists of two components of almost equal size , making it a truly "double" asteroid. Its binary nature was discovered on 10 August 2000 by a group of astronomers using adaptive optics at the Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea. The "secondary" is...
system, identified in August 2000. Small satellites are often referred to as moonlets.
Discovery milestones
, 190 minor planet moons had been discovered, 67 in the asteroid beltAsteroid belt
The asteroid belt is the region of the Solar System located roughly between the orbits of the planets Mars and Jupiter. It is occupied by numerous irregularly shaped bodies called asteroids or minor planets...
(5 with two satellites), 4 Jupiter trojans, 37 to 41 near-Earth object
Near-Earth object
A near-Earth object is a Solar System object whose orbit brings it into close proximity with the Earth. All NEOs have a perihelion distance less than 1.3 AU. They include a few thousand near-Earth asteroids , near-Earth comets, a number of solar-orbiting spacecraft, and meteoroids large enough to...
s and 9 Mars-crossers. There are also 63 known moons of trans-Neptunian objects.
As early as 1978, following a stellar occultation, 532 Herculina
532 Herculina
- Discovery :It was discovered on April 20, 1904, by Max Wolf in Heidelberg, and initially catalogued as 1904 NY. The origin of its name is not known; it may be named after the mythical Hercules, or after an unknown woman of that name...
had been suggested to have a moon and there were reports of other asteroids having companions (usually referred to as satellites) in the following years. A letter in Sky & Telescope magazine at this time pointed to pairs of large craters (e.g. the Clearwater Lakes
Clearwater Lakes
The Lac à l'Eau Claire , also called the Clearwater Lakes in English, Wiyasakami in Cree and Allait Qasigialingat by the Inuit, are a pair of circular lakes on the Canadian Shield in Quebec, Canada, near Hudson Bay.The lakes are actually a single body of water with a sprinkling of islands forming a...
in Quebec) also suggesting asteroids having companions.
However, it was not until 1993 that the first asteroid moon was confirmed when the Galileo probe discovered Dactyl orbiting 243 Ida
243 Ida
243 Ida is an asteroid in the Koronis family of the asteroid belt. It was discovered on 29 September 1884 by Johann Palisa and named after a nymph from Greek mythology. Later telescopic observations categorized Ida as an S-type asteroid, the most numerous type in the inner asteroid belt. On 28...
. The second was discovered around 45 Eugenia
45 Eugenia
45 Eugenia is a large main-belt asteroid. It is famed as one of the first asteroids to be found to have a moon orbiting it. It is also the second known triple asteroid, after 87 Sylvia.- Discovery :...
in 1998. In 2001, 617 Patroclus
617 Patroclus
617 Patroclus is a binary minor planet made up of two similarly-sized objects orbiting their common centre of gravity. It is a Trojan asteroid, sharing an orbit with Jupiter. It was discovered in 1906 by August Kopff, and was the second trojan to be discovered...
and its same-sized companion Menoetius became the first known binary system in the trojan
Trojan (astronomy)
In astronomy, a Trojan is a minor planet or natural satellite that shares an orbit with a larger planet or moon, but does not collide with it because it orbits around one of the two Lagrangian points of stability , and , which lie approximately 60° ahead of and behind the larger body,...
population. The first trans-Neptunian
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...
binary, was optically resolved in 2002.
Triple systems
In 2005, the asteroid 87 Sylvia87 Sylvia
87 Sylvia is one of the largest main-belt asteroids. It is a member of the Cybele group located beyond the core of the belt . Sylvia is remarkable for being the first asteroid known to possess more than one moon....
was discovered to have two moons, making it the first known triple asteroid. This was followed by the discovery of a second moon orbiting 45 Eugenia
45 Eugenia
45 Eugenia is a large main-belt asteroid. It is famed as one of the first asteroids to be found to have a moon orbiting it. It is also the second known triple asteroid, after 87 Sylvia.- Discovery :...
. Also in 2005, the Kuiper belt object
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...
(KBO) was discovered to have two moons, making it the second KBO after 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...
known to have more than one moon. Other known triple systems include: 3749 Balam
3749 Balam
3749 Balam is an asteroid orbiting the Sun. It is named after the Canadian astronomer David D. Balam.- Satellite system :A satellite, designated S/2002 1, was discovered by William J. Merline, Laird M. Close, Nick Siegler, Christophe Dumas, Clark R. Chapman, François J. Rigaut, François Ménard,...
(March 2008), 216 Kleopatra
216 Kleopatra
216 Kleopatra is a trinary main-belt asteroid that was discovered by Johann Palisa on April 10, 1880, in Pola. It is named after Cleopatra, Queen of Ancient Egypt....
(September 2008), and 93 Minerva
93 Minerva
93 Minerva is a large trinary main-belt asteroid. It is a C-type asteroid, meaning that it has a dark surface and possibly a primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by J. C. Watson on August 24, 1867, and named after Minerva, the Roman equivalent of Athena, goddess of wisdom...
(August 2009).
Commonality
The data about the populations of binary objects are still patchy. In addition to the inevitable observational bias (dependence on the distance from Earth, size, albedoAlbedo
Albedo , or reflection coefficient, is the diffuse reflectivity or reflecting power of a surface. It is defined as the ratio of reflected radiation from the surface to incident radiation upon it...
and separation of the components) the frequency appears to be different among different categories of objects. Among asteroids, an estimated 2% would have satellites. Among trans-Neptunian object
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...
s (TNO), an estimated 11% are believed to be binary or multiple objects, but three of the four known large TNO (75%) have at least one satellite.
More than 20 binaries are known in each of the main groupings: near-Earth asteroids, main-belt
Asteroid belt
The asteroid belt is the region of the Solar System located roughly between the orbits of the planets Mars and Jupiter. It is occupied by numerous irregularly shaped bodies called asteroids or minor planets...
asteroids, and trans-Neptunians
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...
, not including numerous claims based solely on light-curve variation.
No binaries have been found so far among centaur
Centaur (planetoid)
Centaurs are an unstable orbital class of minor planets that behave with characteristics of both asteroids and comets. They are named after the mythological race of beings, centaurs, which were a mixture of horse and human...
s with semi-major axis
Semi-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...
smaller than Neptune.
However, using an extended definition of Centaurs, as the objects on unstable orbits with the perihelion inside the orbit of Neptune, the first binary centaur, 42355 Typhon
42355 Typhon
42355 Typhon is a scattered disc object that was discovered on February 5, 2002, by the NEAT program. It measures 134±13 km in diameter, and is named after Typhon, a monster in Greek mythology....
(previously known as ), was identified in 2006.
Origin
The origin of minor-planet moons is not currently known with certainty, and a variety of theories exist. A widely accepted theory is that minor-planet moons are formed from debris knocked off of the primary by an impact. Other pairings may be formed when a small object is captured by the gravity of a larger one.Formation by collision is constrained by the angular momentum
Angular momentum
In physics, angular momentum, moment of momentum, or rotational momentum is a conserved vector quantity that can be used to describe the overall state of a physical system...
of components i.e. by the masses and their separation. Close binaries fit this model (e.g. 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...
–Charon
Charon (moon)
Charon is the largest satellite of the dwarf planet Pluto. It was discovered in 1978 at the United States Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station. Following the 2005 discovery of two other natural satellites of Pluto , Charon may also be referred to as Pluto I...
). Distant binaries however, with components of comparable size, are unlikely to have followed this scenario, unless considerable mass has been lost in the event.
The distances of the components for the known binaries vary from a few hundreds of kilometres (243 Ida
243 Ida
243 Ida is an asteroid in the Koronis family of the asteroid belt. It was discovered on 29 September 1884 by Johann Palisa and named after a nymph from Greek mythology. Later telescopic observations categorized Ida as an S-type asteroid, the most numerous type in the inner asteroid belt. On 28...
, 3749 Balam
3749 Balam
3749 Balam is an asteroid orbiting the Sun. It is named after the Canadian astronomer David D. Balam.- Satellite system :A satellite, designated S/2002 1, was discovered by William J. Merline, Laird M. Close, Nick Siegler, Christophe Dumas, Clark R. Chapman, François J. Rigaut, François Ménard,...
) to more than 3000 km (379 Huenna
379 Huenna
379 Huenna is a large Themistian asteroid. It is classified as a C-type asteroid and is probably composed of carbonaceous material.It was discovered by Auguste Charlois on January 8, 1894 in Nice...
) for the asteroids. Among TNOs, the known separations vary from 3,000 to 50,000 km.
Populations
What is "typical" for a binary system tends to depend on its location in the Solar System (presumably because of different modes of origin and lifetimes of such systems in different populations of minor planets).- Among near-Earth asteroids, satellites tend to orbit at distances of the order of 3–7 primary radii, and have diameters two to several times smaller than the primary. Since these binaries are all inner-planet crossers, it is thought that tidal stresses that occurred when the parent object passed close to a planet may be responsible for the formation of many of them, although collisions are thought to also be a factor in the creation of these satellites.
- Among main-belt asteroidAsteroidAsteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
s, the satellites are usually much smaller than the primary (a notable exception being 90 Antiope90 AntiopeThe most remarkable feature of Antiope is that it consists of two components of almost equal size , making it a truly "double" asteroid. Its binary nature was discovered on 10 August 2000 by a group of astronomers using adaptive optics at the Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea. The "secondary" is...
), and orbit around 10 primary radii away. Many of the binary systems here are members of asteroid familiesAsteroid familyAn asteroid family is a population of asteroids that share similar proper orbital elements, such as semimajor axis, eccentricity, and orbital inclination. The members of the families are thought to be fragments of past asteroid collisions...
, and a good proportion of satellites are expected to be fragments of a parent body whose disruption after an asteroid collision produced both the primary and satellite. - Among trans-Neptunian objectTrans-Neptunian objectA 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...
s, it is common for the two orbiting components to be of comparable size, and for the semi-major axis of their orbits to be much larger − about 100 to 1000 primary radii. A significant proportion of these binaries are expected to be primordial.
Dwarf planets
Among the dwarf planets, it is 90 percent certain that has no moons larger than 1 km in size, assuming that they would have the same albedoAlbedo
Albedo , or reflection coefficient, is the diffuse reflectivity or reflecting power of a surface. It is defined as the ratio of reflected radiation from the surface to incident radiation upon it...
as Ceres itself.
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...
has four moons. Its largest moon Charon
Charon (moon)
Charon is the largest satellite of the dwarf planet Pluto. It was discovered in 1978 at the United States Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station. Following the 2005 discovery of two other natural satellites of Pluto , Charon may also be referred to as Pluto I...
is more than half as large as Pluto itself, and large enough to orbit a point outside Pluto's surface. In effect, each orbits the other, forming a binary system
Binary system (astronomy)
A binary system is an astronomical term referring to two objects in space which are so close that their gravitational interaction causes them to orbit about a common center of mass. Some definitions A binary system is an astronomical term referring to two objects in space (usually stars, but also...
informally referred to as a double-dwarf-planet
Double planet
In astronomy, double planet and binary planet are informal terms used to describe a binary system of two astronomical objects that each satisfy the definition of planet and that are near enough to each other to have a significant gravitational effect on each other compared with the effect of the...
. Pluto's three other moons, Nix
Nix (moon)
Nix is a natural satellite of Pluto. It was discovered along with Hydra in June 2005, and is to be visited along with Pluto by the New Horizons mission in July 2015.- Discovery :...
, Hydra
Hydra (moon)
Hydra is the second outermost known natural satellite of Pluto. It was discovered along with Nix in June 2005, and is to be visited along with Pluto by the New Horizons mission in July 2015.- Discovery :...
, and P4, are far smaller and orbit the Pluto–Charon system.
has no known moons. A satellite having 1% Makemake's brightness would have been detected if it had been located at an angular distance
Angular distance
In mathematics and all natural sciences , the angular distance between two point objects, as observed from a location different from either of these objects, is the size of the angle between the two directions originating from...
from Makemake farther than 0.4 arcseconds (0.0001 degrees).
has one known moon, Dysnomia
Dysnomia (moon)
- References :...
. Its radius, based on its brightness, is estimated to be 50 to 125 km.
Haumea has two moons with radii estimated around 155 km (Hiʻiaka
Hi'iaka (moon)
Hiiaka is the larger, outer moon of the dwarf planet Haumea.- Discovery and naming :Hiiaka was the first satellite discovered around Haumea. It is named after one of the daughters of Haumea, Hiiaka, the patron goddess of the Big Island of Hawaii, though at first it had gone by the nickname...
) and 85 km (Namaka
Namaka (moon)
Namaka is the smaller, inner moon of the dwarf planet Haumea. It is named after Nāmaka, one of the daughters of Haumea, the goddess of the sea in Hawaiian mythology.- Discovery :Namaka was discovered on 30 June 2005 and announced on November 29, 2005...
).
Near-Earth objects
| Name | Type | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1862 Apollo 1862 Apollo 1862 Apollo is a Q-type asteroid, discovered by Karl Reinmuth in 1932, but lost and not recovered until 1973. It is named after the Greek god Apollo.... |
Apollo Apollo asteroid The Apollo asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after 1862 Apollo, the first asteroid of this group to be discovered by Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth... |
1.7 | S/2005 (1862) 1 | 0.08 | 3 |
| 3671 Dionysus 3671 Dionysus 3671 Dionysus is a small binary Amor asteroid, orbiting between the Earth and the asteroid belt. It was discovered by Carolyn and Gene Shoemaker at Palomar Observatory on 27 May 1984. It is named after Dionysus, the Greek god of wine. Its provisional designation was 1984 KD... |
Amor Amor asteroid The Amor asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after the asteroid 1221 Amor. They approach the orbit of the Earth from beyond, but do not cross it. Most Amors do cross the orbit of Mars... |
1.5 | S/1997 (3671) 1 | 0.4 | 2.2 |
| 5381 Sekhmet 5381 Sekhmet 5381 Sekhmet is an Aten asteroid whose orbit is sometimes closer to the Sun than the Earth's. It was discovered on 14 May 1991 by Carolyn Shoemaker at Palomar Observatory... |
Aten Aten asteroid The Aten asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids, named after the first of the group to be discovered . They are defined by having semi-major axes of less than one astronomical unit... |
1 | S/2003 (5381) 1 | 0.3 | 1.54 ± 0.12 |
| 7088 Ishtar 7088 Ishtar 7088 Ishtar is an Amor asteroid discovered on January 1, 1992 by Shoemaker, C. S. at Palomar.- External links :*... |
Amor | 1.5? | S/2006 (7088) 1 | ? | ? |
| (31345) 1998 PG | Amor | 0.9 | S/2001 (31345) 1 | 0.3 | 1.5 |
| (35107) 1991 VH (35107) 1991 VH 1991 VH is a near-Earth minor planet in the Apollo group. It was discovered by Robert H. McNaught at the Siding Spring Observatory in Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, on November 9, 1991. It is listed as a potentially hazardous object.... |
Apollo | 1.2 | S/2001 (35107) 1 | 0.5 | 3.2 |
| 65803 Didymos 65803 Didymos 65803 Didymos is an Apollo asteroid discovered on April 11, 1996 by Spacewatch at Kitt Peak. It has a satellite orbiting it with a period of 11.9 hours, hence the appellation "Didymos", meaning "twin". The primary asteroid is about 800m in diameter, the satellite is about 150m in diameter in an... |
Amor | 0.8 | S/2003 (65803) 1 | 0.15 ± 0.05 | 1.1 |
| Aten | 0.9 | S/2001 (66063) 1 | 0.36 | 0.8 | |
| Aten | 1.2 | S/2001 (66391) 1 | > 0.36 | 2.6 | |
| 69230 Hermes 69230 Hermes -External links:* * *... |
Apollo | 0.4 | S/2003 (69230) 1 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Apollo | 0.7 | S/2004 (85938) 1 | 0.35 | 1.5 | |
| Apollo | 1 | S/2001 (88710) 1 | 0.31 | 1.8 | |
| (136617) 1994 CC (136617) 1994 CC 1994 CC is a near-Earth asteroid that was discovered on February 3, 1994, by Spacewatch's Jim Scotti. In June 2009 it was shown to be a triple system, i.e... |
Apollo | 0.7 | ? 2 | both ~0.05 | ? |
| Aten | 3.5 | S/1999 (137170) 1 | 0.8 | 7.0 | |
| (162000) 1990 OS | Apollo | 0.3 | S/2003 (1990 OS) 1 | 0.045 | 0.6 |
| (164121) 2003 YT1 | Apollo | 1 | 0.18 | ~2.7 | |
| (175706) 1996 FG3 (175706) 1996 FG3 1996 FG3 is a near-Earth minor planet in the Apollo group. It was discovered by Robert H. McNaught at the Siding Spring Observatory in Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, on March 24, 1996... |
Apollo | 1.4 | 0.43 | 2.4 | |
| (185851) 2000 DP107 | Apollo | 0.80 (± 0.16) | 0.30 (± 0.15) | 2.622 ± 0.162 | |
| Amor | 0.9 | 0.5 | 2.1 | ||
| 1994 XD | Apollo | 1? | S/2005 (1994 XD) 1 | ? | ? |
| Aten | 0.8 | 0.12 | 4.5 ± 0.5 | ||
| Apollo | 0.23 ± 0.06 | 0.10 | 0.337 ± 0.013 | ||
| Amor | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.5 | ||
| Apollo | 3 | 0.2 | 5 | ||
| Amor | 0.5 | 0.1 | ? | ||
| Apollo | 0.12 | 0.06 | 0.3? | ||
| 2004 DC | Apollo | 0.3 | S/2006 (2004 DC) 1 | ? | ? |
| 2005 AB | Amor | 1.2? | S/2005 (2005 AB) 1 | 0.3 | 2.5? |
| Apollo | 0.5 ± 0.1 | 0.2 ± 0.1 | ≥ 0.6 | ||
| Apollo | 0.45 | ? | ? |
Mars crossers
| Name | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1139 Atami 1139 Atami 1139 Atami is a Mars-crossing asteroid orbiting the Sun. It makes a revolution around the Sun once every 3 years. It completes one rotation once every 27 hours. It was discovered by Okuro Oikawa and Kazuo Kubokawa on December 1, 1929. It is named after a harbor near Tokyo, Japan... |
7 | S/2005 (1139) 1 | 5 | 15? |
| 2044 Wirt 2044 Wirt 2044 Wirt is a Mars-crossing asteroid discovered on November 8, 1950 by C. A. Wirtanen at the Lick Observatory.-Satellite:Photometric observations in 2005 confirmed a 2 km satellite with an orbital period of 18.97 hours.- External links :* * from JPL /... |
7 | S/2006 (2044) 1 | 2 | ? |
| (5407) 1992 AX (5407) 1992 AX 1992 AX is a Mars-crossing minor planet. It was discovered by Seiji Ueda and Hiroshi Kaneda in Kushiro, Hokkaidō, on January 4, 1992.-External links:*... |
4 | S/2001 (5407) 1 | 1.2 | 6.8 |
| 4? | S/2005 (34706) 1 | 1? | 8? | |
| 3? | S/2005 (114319) 1 | ? | ? |
Main-belt asteroids
| Name | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Kalliope 22 Kalliope 22 Kalliope is a large main belt M-type asteroid discovered by J. R. Hind on November 16, 1852. It is named after Calliope, the Greek Muse of epic poetry... |
(215×180×150) | Linus Linus (moon) Kalliope I Linus is an asteroid moon that orbits the large M-type asteroid 22 Kalliope. It was discovered on August 29, 2001, by astronomers Jean-Luc Margot and Michael E. Brown with the Keck telescope. Another team also detected the moon with the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on September 2,... |
38 ± 6 | 1,065 ± 8 |
| 41 Daphne 41 Daphne 41 Daphne is a large main-belt asteroid. This dark-surfaced body is probably composed of primitive carbonaceous chondrites. It was discovered by H. Goldschmidt on May 22, 1856, and named after Daphne, the nymph in Greek mythology who was turned into a laurel tree. Daphne has been observed to... |
174.0 | S/2008 (41) 1 | <2 | 443 |
| 45 Eugenia 45 Eugenia 45 Eugenia is a large main-belt asteroid. It is famed as one of the first asteroids to be found to have a moon orbiting it. It is also the second known triple asteroid, after 87 Sylvia.- Discovery :... |
(305×220×145) | Petit-Prince Petit-Prince (moon) Eugenia I Petit-Prince is the larger, outer moon of asteroid 45 Eugenia. It was discovered in 1998 by astronomers at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. Initially, it received the provisional designation S/1998 1. Petit-Prince was the first asteroid moon to be discovered... (Eugenia I) |
13 ± 1 | 1,184 ± 12 |
| S/2004 (45) 1 | ~6 | ~700(?) | ||
| 87 Sylvia 87 Sylvia 87 Sylvia is one of the largest main-belt asteroids. It is a member of the Cybele group located beyond the core of the belt . Sylvia is remarkable for being the first asteroid known to possess more than one moon.... |
(385×265×230) | Remus Remus (moon) Remus is the inner and smaller moon of the main-belt asteroid 87 Sylvia. It follows an almost-circular close-to-equatorial orbit around the parent asteroid. In this respect it is similar to the other moon Romulus.... (Sylvia II) |
7 ± 2 | 706 ± 5 |
| Romulus Romulus (moon) Romulus is the outer and larger moon of the main-belt asteroid 87 Sylvia, not to be confused with the directly Sun-orbiting asteroid 10386 Romulus. It follows an almost-circular close-to-equatorial orbit around the parent asteroid. In this respect it is similar to the other moon Remus.Romulus was... (Sylvia I) |
18 ± 4 | 1,356 ± 5 | ||
| 90 Antiope 90 Antiope The most remarkable feature of Antiope is that it consists of two components of almost equal size , making it a truly "double" asteroid. Its binary nature was discovered on 10 August 2000 by a group of astronomers using adaptive optics at the Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea. The "secondary" is... |
110±16 | S/2000 (90) 1 | 110 ± 16 | 170 ± 1 |
| 93 Minerva 93 Minerva 93 Minerva is a large trinary main-belt asteroid. It is a C-type asteroid, meaning that it has a dark surface and possibly a primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by J. C. Watson on August 24, 1867, and named after Minerva, the Roman equivalent of Athena, goddess of wisdom... |
140 | S/2009 (93) 1 | 4 | 630? |
| S/2009 (93) 2 | 3 | 380? | ||
| 107 Camilla 107 Camilla 107 Camilla is one of the largest main-belt asteroids. It orbits within the Cybele Group, beyond most main-belt asteroids. It has a very dark surface and primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by N. R... |
| Name | Type | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1862 Apollo 1862 Apollo 1862 Apollo is a Q-type asteroid, discovered by Karl Reinmuth in 1932, but lost and not recovered until 1973. It is named after the Greek god Apollo.... |
Apollo Apollo asteroid The Apollo asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after 1862 Apollo, the first asteroid of this group to be discovered by Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth... |
1.7 | S/2005 (1862) 1 | 0.08 | 3 |
| 3671 Dionysus 3671 Dionysus 3671 Dionysus is a small binary Amor asteroid, orbiting between the Earth and the asteroid belt. It was discovered by Carolyn and Gene Shoemaker at Palomar Observatory on 27 May 1984. It is named after Dionysus, the Greek god of wine. Its provisional designation was 1984 KD... |
Amor Amor asteroid The Amor asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after the asteroid 1221 Amor. They approach the orbit of the Earth from beyond, but do not cross it. Most Amors do cross the orbit of Mars... |
1.5 | S/1997 (3671) 1 | 0.4 | 2.2 |
| 5381 Sekhmet 5381 Sekhmet 5381 Sekhmet is an Aten asteroid whose orbit is sometimes closer to the Sun than the Earth's. It was discovered on 14 May 1991 by Carolyn Shoemaker at Palomar Observatory... |
Aten Aten asteroid The Aten asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids, named after the first of the group to be discovered . They are defined by having semi-major axes of less than one astronomical unit... |
1 | S/2003 (5381) 1 | 0.3 | 1.54 ± 0.12 |
| 7088 Ishtar 7088 Ishtar 7088 Ishtar is an Amor asteroid discovered on January 1, 1992 by Shoemaker, C. S. at Palomar.- External links :*... |
Amor | 1.5? | S/2006 (7088) 1 | ? | ? |
| (31345) 1998 PG | Amor | 0.9 | S/2001 (31345) 1 | 0.3 | 1.5 |
| (35107) 1991 VH (35107) 1991 VH 1991 VH is a near-Earth minor planet in the Apollo group. It was discovered by Robert H. McNaught at the Siding Spring Observatory in Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, on November 9, 1991. It is listed as a potentially hazardous object.... |
Apollo | 1.2 | S/2001 (35107) 1 | 0.5 | 3.2 |
| 65803 Didymos 65803 Didymos 65803 Didymos is an Apollo asteroid discovered on April 11, 1996 by Spacewatch at Kitt Peak. It has a satellite orbiting it with a period of 11.9 hours, hence the appellation "Didymos", meaning "twin". The primary asteroid is about 800m in diameter, the satellite is about 150m in diameter in an... |
Amor | 0.8 | S/2003 (65803) 1 | 0.15 ± 0.05 | 1.1 |
| Aten | 0.9 | S/2001 (66063) 1 | 0.36 | 0.8 | |
| Aten | 1.2 | S/2001 (66391) 1 | > 0.36 | 2.6 | |
| 69230 Hermes 69230 Hermes -External links:* * *... |
Apollo | 0.4 | S/2003 (69230) 1 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Apollo | 0.7 | S/2004 (85938) 1 | 0.35 | 1.5 | |
| Apollo | 1 | S/2001 (88710) 1 | 0.31 | 1.8 | |
| (136617) 1994 CC (136617) 1994 CC 1994 CC is a near-Earth asteroid that was discovered on February 3, 1994, by Spacewatch's Jim Scotti. In June 2009 it was shown to be a triple system, i.e... |
Apollo | 0.7 | ? 2 | both ~0.05 | ? |
| Aten | 3.5 | S/1999 (137170) 1 | 0.8 | 7.0 | |
| (162000) 1990 OS | Apollo | 0.3 | S/2003 (1990 OS) 1 | 0.045 | 0.6 |
| (164121) 2003 YT1 | Apollo | 1 | 0.18 | ~2.7 | |
| (175706) 1996 FG3 (175706) 1996 FG3 1996 FG3 is a near-Earth minor planet in the Apollo group. It was discovered by Robert H. McNaught at the Siding Spring Observatory in Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, on March 24, 1996... |
Apollo | 1.4 | 0.43 | 2.4 | |
| (185851) 2000 DP107 | Apollo | 0.80 (± 0.16) | 0.30 (± 0.15) | 2.622 ± 0.162 | |
| Amor | 0.9 | 0.5 | 2.1 | ||
| 1994 XD | Apollo | 1? | S/2005 (1994 XD) 1 | ? | ? |
| Aten | 0.8 | 0.12 | 4.5 ± 0.5 | ||
| Apollo | 0.23 ± 0.06 | 0.10 | 0.337 ± 0.013 | ||
| Amor | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.5 | ||
| Apollo | 3 | 0.2 | 5 | ||
| Amor | 0.5 | 0.1 | ? | ||
| Apollo | 0.12 | 0.06 | 0.3? | ||
| 2004 DC | Apollo | 0.3 | S/2006 (2004 DC) 1 | ? | ? |
| 2005 AB | Amor | 1.2? | S/2005 (2005 AB) 1 | 0.3 | 2.5? |
| Apollo | 0.5 ± 0.1 | 0.2 ± 0.1 | ≥ 0.6 | ||
| Apollo | 0.45 | ? | ? |
Mars crossers
| Name | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1139 Atami 1139 Atami 1139 Atami is a Mars-crossing asteroid orbiting the Sun. It makes a revolution around the Sun once every 3 years. It completes one rotation once every 27 hours. It was discovered by Okuro Oikawa and Kazuo Kubokawa on December 1, 1929. It is named after a harbor near Tokyo, Japan... |
7 | S/2005 (1139) 1 | 5 | 15? |
| 2044 Wirt 2044 Wirt 2044 Wirt is a Mars-crossing asteroid discovered on November 8, 1950 by C. A. Wirtanen at the Lick Observatory.-Satellite:Photometric observations in 2005 confirmed a 2 km satellite with an orbital period of 18.97 hours.- External links :* * from JPL /... |
7 | S/2006 (2044) 1 | 2 | ? |
| (5407) 1992 AX (5407) 1992 AX 1992 AX is a Mars-crossing minor planet. It was discovered by Seiji Ueda and Hiroshi Kaneda in Kushiro, Hokkaidō, on January 4, 1992.-External links:*... |
4 | S/2001 (5407) 1 | 1.2 | 6.8 |
| 4? | S/2005 (34706) 1 | 1? | 8? | |
| 3? | S/2005 (114319) 1 | ? | ? |
Main-belt asteroids
| Name | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Kalliope 22 Kalliope 22 Kalliope is a large main belt M-type asteroid discovered by J. R. Hind on November 16, 1852. It is named after Calliope, the Greek Muse of epic poetry... |
(215×180×150) | Linus Linus (moon) Kalliope I Linus is an asteroid moon that orbits the large M-type asteroid 22 Kalliope. It was discovered on August 29, 2001, by astronomers Jean-Luc Margot and Michael E. Brown with the Keck telescope. Another team also detected the moon with the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on September 2,... |
38 ± 6 | 1,065 ± 8 |
| 41 Daphne 41 Daphne 41 Daphne is a large main-belt asteroid. This dark-surfaced body is probably composed of primitive carbonaceous chondrites. It was discovered by H. Goldschmidt on May 22, 1856, and named after Daphne, the nymph in Greek mythology who was turned into a laurel tree. Daphne has been observed to... |
174.0 | S/2008 (41) 1 | <2 | 443 |
| 45 Eugenia 45 Eugenia 45 Eugenia is a large main-belt asteroid. It is famed as one of the first asteroids to be found to have a moon orbiting it. It is also the second known triple asteroid, after 87 Sylvia.- Discovery :... |
(305×220×145) | Petit-Prince Petit-Prince (moon) Eugenia I Petit-Prince is the larger, outer moon of asteroid 45 Eugenia. It was discovered in 1998 by astronomers at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. Initially, it received the provisional designation S/1998 1. Petit-Prince was the first asteroid moon to be discovered... (Eugenia I) |
13 ± 1 | 1,184 ± 12 |
| S/2004 (45) 1 | ~6 | ~700(?) | ||
| 87 Sylvia 87 Sylvia 87 Sylvia is one of the largest main-belt asteroids. It is a member of the Cybele group located beyond the core of the belt . Sylvia is remarkable for being the first asteroid known to possess more than one moon.... |
(385×265×230) | Remus Remus (moon) Remus is the inner and smaller moon of the main-belt asteroid 87 Sylvia. It follows an almost-circular close-to-equatorial orbit around the parent asteroid. In this respect it is similar to the other moon Romulus.... (Sylvia II) |
7 ± 2 | 706 ± 5 |
| Romulus Romulus (moon) Romulus is the outer and larger moon of the main-belt asteroid 87 Sylvia, not to be confused with the directly Sun-orbiting asteroid 10386 Romulus. It follows an almost-circular close-to-equatorial orbit around the parent asteroid. In this respect it is similar to the other moon Remus.Romulus was... (Sylvia I) |
18 ± 4 | 1,356 ± 5 | ||
| 90 Antiope 90 Antiope The most remarkable feature of Antiope is that it consists of two components of almost equal size , making it a truly "double" asteroid. Its binary nature was discovered on 10 August 2000 by a group of astronomers using adaptive optics at the Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea. The "secondary" is... |
110±16 | S/2000 (90) 1 | 110 ± 16 | 170 ± 1 |
| 93 Minerva 93 Minerva 93 Minerva is a large trinary main-belt asteroid. It is a C-type asteroid, meaning that it has a dark surface and possibly a primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by J. C. Watson on August 24, 1867, and named after Minerva, the Roman equivalent of Athena, goddess of wisdom... |
140 | S/2009 (93) 1 | 4 | 630? |
| S/2009 (93) 2 | 3 | 380? | ||
| 107 Camilla 107 Camilla 107 Camilla is one of the largest main-belt asteroids. It orbits within the Cybele Group, beyond most main-belt asteroids. It has a very dark surface and primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by N. R... |
| Name | Type | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1862 Apollo 1862 Apollo 1862 Apollo is a Q-type asteroid, discovered by Karl Reinmuth in 1932, but lost and not recovered until 1973. It is named after the Greek god Apollo.... |
Apollo Apollo asteroid The Apollo asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after 1862 Apollo, the first asteroid of this group to be discovered by Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth... |
1.7 | S/2005 (1862) 1 | 0.08 | 3 |
| 3671 Dionysus 3671 Dionysus 3671 Dionysus is a small binary Amor asteroid, orbiting between the Earth and the asteroid belt. It was discovered by Carolyn and Gene Shoemaker at Palomar Observatory on 27 May 1984. It is named after Dionysus, the Greek god of wine. Its provisional designation was 1984 KD... |
Amor Amor asteroid The Amor asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after the asteroid 1221 Amor. They approach the orbit of the Earth from beyond, but do not cross it. Most Amors do cross the orbit of Mars... |
1.5 | S/1997 (3671) 1 | 0.4 | 2.2 |
| 5381 Sekhmet 5381 Sekhmet 5381 Sekhmet is an Aten asteroid whose orbit is sometimes closer to the Sun than the Earth's. It was discovered on 14 May 1991 by Carolyn Shoemaker at Palomar Observatory... |
Aten Aten asteroid The Aten asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids, named after the first of the group to be discovered . They are defined by having semi-major axes of less than one astronomical unit... |
1 | S/2003 (5381) 1 | 0.3 | 1.54 ± 0.12 |
| 7088 Ishtar 7088 Ishtar 7088 Ishtar is an Amor asteroid discovered on January 1, 1992 by Shoemaker, C. S. at Palomar.- External links :*... |
Amor | 1.5? | S/2006 (7088) 1 | ? | ? |
| (31345) 1998 PG | Amor | 0.9 | S/2001 (31345) 1 | 0.3 | 1.5 |
| (35107) 1991 VH (35107) 1991 VH 1991 VH is a near-Earth minor planet in the Apollo group. It was discovered by Robert H. McNaught at the Siding Spring Observatory in Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, on November 9, 1991. It is listed as a potentially hazardous object.... |
Apollo | 1.2 | S/2001 (35107) 1 | 0.5 | 3.2 |
| 65803 Didymos 65803 Didymos 65803 Didymos is an Apollo asteroid discovered on April 11, 1996 by Spacewatch at Kitt Peak. It has a satellite orbiting it with a period of 11.9 hours, hence the appellation "Didymos", meaning "twin". The primary asteroid is about 800m in diameter, the satellite is about 150m in diameter in an... |
Amor | 0.8 | S/2003 (65803) 1 | 0.15 ± 0.05 | 1.1 |
| Aten | 0.9 | S/2001 (66063) 1 | 0.36 | 0.8 | |
| Aten | 1.2 | S/2001 (66391) 1 | > 0.36 | 2.6 | |
| 69230 Hermes 69230 Hermes -External links:* * *... |
Apollo | 0.4 | S/2003 (69230) 1 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Apollo | 0.7 | S/2004 (85938) 1 | 0.35 | 1.5 | |
| Apollo | 1 | S/2001 (88710) 1 | 0.31 | 1.8 | |
| (136617) 1994 CC (136617) 1994 CC 1994 CC is a near-Earth asteroid that was discovered on February 3, 1994, by Spacewatch's Jim Scotti. In June 2009 it was shown to be a triple system, i.e... |
Apollo | 0.7 | ? 2 | both ~0.05 | ? |
| Aten | 3.5 | S/1999 (137170) 1 | 0.8 | 7.0 | |
| (162000) 1990 OS | Apollo | 0.3 | S/2003 (1990 OS) 1 | 0.045 | 0.6 |
| (164121) 2003 YT1 | Apollo | 1 | 0.18 | ~2.7 | |
| (175706) 1996 FG3 (175706) 1996 FG3 1996 FG3 is a near-Earth minor planet in the Apollo group. It was discovered by Robert H. McNaught at the Siding Spring Observatory in Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, on March 24, 1996... |
Apollo | 1.4 | 0.43 | 2.4 | |
| (185851) 2000 DP107 | Apollo | 0.80 (± 0.16) | 0.30 (± 0.15) | 2.622 ± 0.162 | |
| Amor | 0.9 | 0.5 | 2.1 | ||
| 1994 XD | Apollo | 1? | S/2005 (1994 XD) 1 | ? | ? |
| Aten | 0.8 | 0.12 | 4.5 ± 0.5 | ||
| Apollo | 0.23 ± 0.06 | 0.10 | 0.337 ± 0.013 | ||
| Amor | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.5 | ||
| Apollo | 3 | 0.2 | 5 | ||
| Amor | 0.5 | 0.1 | ? | ||
| Apollo | 0.12 | 0.06 | 0.3? | ||
| 2004 DC | Apollo | 0.3 | S/2006 (2004 DC) 1 | ? | ? |
| 2005 AB | Amor | 1.2? | S/2005 (2005 AB) 1 | 0.3 | 2.5? |
| Apollo | 0.5 ± 0.1 | 0.2 ± 0.1 | ≥ 0.6 | ||
| Apollo | 0.45 | ? | ? |
Mars crossers
| Name | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1139 Atami 1139 Atami 1139 Atami is a Mars-crossing asteroid orbiting the Sun. It makes a revolution around the Sun once every 3 years. It completes one rotation once every 27 hours. It was discovered by Okuro Oikawa and Kazuo Kubokawa on December 1, 1929. It is named after a harbor near Tokyo, Japan... |
7 | S/2005 (1139) 1 | 5 | 15? |
| 2044 Wirt 2044 Wirt 2044 Wirt is a Mars-crossing asteroid discovered on November 8, 1950 by C. A. Wirtanen at the Lick Observatory.-Satellite:Photometric observations in 2005 confirmed a 2 km satellite with an orbital period of 18.97 hours.- External links :* * from JPL /... |
7 | S/2006 (2044) 1 | 2 | ? |
| (5407) 1992 AX (5407) 1992 AX 1992 AX is a Mars-crossing minor planet. It was discovered by Seiji Ueda and Hiroshi Kaneda in Kushiro, Hokkaidō, on January 4, 1992.-External links:*... |
4 | S/2001 (5407) 1 | 1.2 | 6.8 |
| 4? | S/2005 (34706) 1 | 1? | 8? | |
| 3? | S/2005 (114319) 1 | ? | ? |
Main-belt asteroids
| Name | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Kalliope 22 Kalliope 22 Kalliope is a large main belt M-type asteroid discovered by J. R. Hind on November 16, 1852. It is named after Calliope, the Greek Muse of epic poetry... |
(215×180×150) | Linus Linus (moon) Kalliope I Linus is an asteroid moon that orbits the large M-type asteroid 22 Kalliope. It was discovered on August 29, 2001, by astronomers Jean-Luc Margot and Michael E. Brown with the Keck telescope. Another team also detected the moon with the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on September 2,... |
38 ± 6 | 1,065 ± 8 |
| 41 Daphne 41 Daphne 41 Daphne is a large main-belt asteroid. This dark-surfaced body is probably composed of primitive carbonaceous chondrites. It was discovered by H. Goldschmidt on May 22, 1856, and named after Daphne, the nymph in Greek mythology who was turned into a laurel tree. Daphne has been observed to... |
174.0 | S/2008 (41) 1 | <2 | 443 |
| 45 Eugenia 45 Eugenia 45 Eugenia is a large main-belt asteroid. It is famed as one of the first asteroids to be found to have a moon orbiting it. It is also the second known triple asteroid, after 87 Sylvia.- Discovery :... |
(305×220×145) | Petit-Prince Petit-Prince (moon) Eugenia I Petit-Prince is the larger, outer moon of asteroid 45 Eugenia. It was discovered in 1998 by astronomers at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. Initially, it received the provisional designation S/1998 1. Petit-Prince was the first asteroid moon to be discovered... (Eugenia I) |
13 ± 1 | 1,184 ± 12 |
| S/2004 (45) 1 | ~6 | ~700(?) | ||
| 87 Sylvia 87 Sylvia 87 Sylvia is one of the largest main-belt asteroids. It is a member of the Cybele group located beyond the core of the belt . Sylvia is remarkable for being the first asteroid known to possess more than one moon.... |
(385×265×230) | Remus Remus (moon) Remus is the inner and smaller moon of the main-belt asteroid 87 Sylvia. It follows an almost-circular close-to-equatorial orbit around the parent asteroid. In this respect it is similar to the other moon Romulus.... (Sylvia II) |
7 ± 2 | 706 ± 5 |
| Romulus Romulus (moon) Romulus is the outer and larger moon of the main-belt asteroid 87 Sylvia, not to be confused with the directly Sun-orbiting asteroid 10386 Romulus. It follows an almost-circular close-to-equatorial orbit around the parent asteroid. In this respect it is similar to the other moon Remus.Romulus was... (Sylvia I) |
18 ± 4 | 1,356 ± 5 | ||
| 90 Antiope 90 Antiope The most remarkable feature of Antiope is that it consists of two components of almost equal size , making it a truly "double" asteroid. Its binary nature was discovered on 10 August 2000 by a group of astronomers using adaptive optics at the Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea. The "secondary" is... |
110±16 | S/2000 (90) 1 | 110 ± 16 | 170 ± 1 |
| 93 Minerva 93 Minerva 93 Minerva is a large trinary main-belt asteroid. It is a C-type asteroid, meaning that it has a dark surface and possibly a primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by J. C. Watson on August 24, 1867, and named after Minerva, the Roman equivalent of Athena, goddess of wisdom... |
140 | S/2009 (93) 1 | 4 | 630? |
| S/2009 (93) 2 | 3 | 380? | ||
| 107 Camilla 107 Camilla 107 Camilla is one of the largest main-belt asteroids. It orbits within the Cybele Group, beyond most main-belt asteroids. It has a very dark surface and primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by N. R... |
(285×205×170) ± 20 |
S/2001 (107) 1 | 11 ± 2 | 1,235 ± 16 |
| 121 Hermione 121 Hermione 121 Hermione is a very large asteroid of the dark C spectral type, orbiting in the Cybele group in the far outer asteroid belt. As a C-type, it is probably composed of carbonaceous materials. It was discovered in 1872, and it also has small asteroid moon discovered in 2002.-Discovery:Hermione was... |
(254×125) | S/2002 (121) 1 | 12 ± 4 | 768 ± 11 |
| 130 Elektra 130 Elektra 130 Elektra is a very large outer main-belt asteroid. It was discovered by C. H. F. Peters on February 17, 1873, and named after Electra, an avenger in Greek mythology.Its spectrum is of the G type, hence it probably has a Ceres-like composition... |
(215×155) | S/2003 (130) 1 | 6 ± 2 | 1,252 ± 30 |
| 216 Kleopatra 216 Kleopatra 216 Kleopatra is a trinary main-belt asteroid that was discovered by Johann Palisa on April 10, 1880, in Pola. It is named after Cleopatra, Queen of Ancient Egypt.... |
217×94×81 | Alexhelios (Kleopatra I) | 5 | 650 |
| Cleoselene (Kleopatra II) | 3 | 380 | ||
| 243 Ida 243 Ida 243 Ida is an asteroid in the Koronis family of the asteroid belt. It was discovered on 29 September 1884 by Johann Palisa and named after a nymph from Greek mythology. Later telescopic observations categorized Ida as an S-type asteroid, the most numerous type in the inner asteroid belt. On 28... |
(59.8×25.4×18.6) | Dactyl (Ida I) | (1.6×1.4×1.2) | 108 |
| 283 Emma 283 Emma 283 Emma is a large main-belt asteroid.It was discovered by Auguste Charlois on February 8, 1889, in Nice.-Satellite:A companion for 283 Emma was detected on 14 July 2003 by W. J. Merline et al. using the Keck II telescope. It is about 12 km in diameter and is designated S/2003 1... |
148.1 ± 4.6 | S/2003 (283) 1 | 12 | 596 ± 3 |
| 379 Huenna 379 Huenna 379 Huenna is a large Themistian asteroid. It is classified as a C-type asteroid and is probably composed of carbonaceous material.It was discovered by Auguste Charlois on January 8, 1894 in Nice... |
92.3 ± 1.7 | S/2003 (379) 1 | 7 | 3,400 ± 11 |
| 702 Alauda 702 Alauda 702 Alauda is a large binary minor planet.Alauda is 194.73 km in diameter. Since it is a binary system, Rojo and Margot have estimated it to have a mass of 6.06 kg with a density of 1.57 g/cm³.-Satellite:... |
194.73 ± 3.2 | S/2007 (702) 1 | 5.5 | 900 |
| 762 Pulcova 762 Pulcova 762 Pulcova is a main-belt asteroid. It was discovered by Grigoriy N. Neujmin in 1913, and is named after Pulkovo Observatory, near Saint Petersburg... |
137.1 ± 3.2 | S/2000 (762) 1 | 20 | 810 |
| 809 Lundia 809 Lundia 809 Lundia is a small, binary, V-type asteroid orbiting within the Flora family in the Main Belt. It is named after Lund Observatory, Sweden.... |
~7–10 | S/2005 (809) 1 | ~7–10 | ~10–20 |
| 854 Frostia 854 Frostia 854 Frostia is an asteroid orbiting the Sun. It is named after Edwin Brant Frost, an American astronomer.A satellite, designated S/2004 1, was identified based on lightcurve observations in July 2004 by Raoul Behrend, Laurent Bernasconi, Alain Klotz, and Russell I. Durkee... |
13.7 ± 5.6 | S/2004 (854) 1 | 10 | ~25 |
| 1089 Tama 1089 Tama 1089 Tama is an asteroid orbiting the Sun. It is named after the Tama River in Japan.A satellite, designated S/2003 1, was identified based on lightcurve observations from 24 December 2003 to 5 January 2004 by Raoul Behrend, René Roy, Claudine Rinner, Pierre Antonini, Petr Pravec, Alan W. Harris,... |
12.9 | S/2003 (1089) 1 | 9 | 20 |
| 1313 Berna 1313 Berna 1313 Berna is an asteroid orbiting the Sun. It is named after the city of Berne, in Switzerland.A satellite, designated S/2004 1, was identified based on lightcurve observations 6–12 February 2004 by René Roy, Stefano Sposetti, Nicolas Waelchli, Donald P. Pray, Nathanaël Berger, Christophe... |
11 | S/2004 (1313) 1 | 11 | 35 |
| 1338 Duponta 1338 Duponta 1338 Duponta is a main-belt asteroid discovered on December 4, 1934 by Boyer, L. at Algiers. Since the albedo of this asteroid is unknown, the size can only be estimated as between about 8 km - 19 km, based on the absolute magnitude of 12.3.-Binary system:Photometric observations in... |
8–19 | S/2007 (1338) 1 | ~3? | ? |
| 1509 Esclangona 1509 Esclangona 1509 Esclangona is a small inner main belt asteroid discovered on December 21, 1938 by André Patry from Nice, France. It is a member of the Hungaria family. Its provisional designation was 1938 YG. It measures 12 km in diameter... |
12 | S/2003 (1509) 1 | 4 | 140 |
| 1717 Arlon 1717 Arlon 1717 Arlon is a main belt asteroid discovered on January 8, 1954 by Sylvain Arend at the Royal Observatory of Belgium in Uccle. It is named after the Belgian town of Arlon.Arlon is roughly 9 km in diameter... |
9? | S/2006 (1717) 1 | ? | 18? |
| 2006 Polonskaya 2006 Polonskaya 2006 Polonskoya is main belt asteroid. It was discovered on 22 September 1973 by N. S. Chernykh and named after Elene Ivanovna Kazimirchak-Polonskaya, a Russian astronomer. Polonskaya's diameter is approximately 10 km.... |
10 | S/2005 (2006) 1 | ? | ? |
| 2478 Tokai 2478 Tokai 2478 Tokai is a main-belt asteroid discovered on May 4, 1981 by T. Furuta at Tōkai, Aichi.Since the albedo of this asteroid is unknown, the size can only be estimated as between about 7 km - 15 km, based on the absolute magnitude of 12.8.-Satellite:Photometric observations in 2007... |
10? | S/2007 (2478) 1 | 7? | ? |
| 2486 Metsähovi 2486 Metsähovi 2486 Metsähovi is a main belt asteroid with an orbital period of 1248.1792618 days .The asteroid was discovered on March 22, 1939.-References:... |
12? | S/2007 (2486) 1 | ? | ? |
| 2754 Efimov 2754 Efimov 2754 Efimov is a main-belt asteroid discovered on August 13, 1966 by Smirnova, T. at Nauchnyj.- External links :*... |
7? | S/2006 (2754) 1 | ? | 12? |
| 3073 Kursk 3073 Kursk 3073 Kursk is a main-belt asteroid discovered on September 24, 1979 by N. Chernykh at Nauchnyj.- External links :... |
8? | S/2007 (3073) 1 | ? | ? |
| 3309 Brorfelde 3309 Brorfelde 3309 Brorfelde is an inner main belt asteroid. It is a member of the Hungaria family. It was discovered on 28 January 1982 by K. S. Jensen, at Brorfelde Observatory in Denmark, for which it was named.Brorfelde measures approximately 6km in diameter.... |
6? | S/2005 (3309) 1 | ? | ? |
| 3703 Volkonskaya 3703 Volkonskaya 3703 Volkonskaya is a main belt asteroid with an orbital period of 1300.6587969 days . The asteroid was discovered on August 9, 1978.-References:... |
3 | S/2003 (3703) 1 | 1.2 | ? |
| 3749 Balam 3749 Balam 3749 Balam is an asteroid orbiting the Sun. It is named after the Canadian astronomer David D. Balam.- Satellite system :A satellite, designated S/2002 1, was discovered by William J. Merline, Laird M. Close, Nick Siegler, Christophe Dumas, Clark R. Chapman, François J. Rigaut, François Ménard,... |
7 | S/2002 (3749) 1 | 1.5 | 310 ± 20 |
| S/2008 (3749) 1 | 3 | ~20 | ||
| 3782 Celle 3782 Celle 3782 Celle is a main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Poul Jensen from Brorfelde Observatory, Denmark and named after the German town of Celle.... |
6 | S/2003 (3782) 1 | 2.5 | 30 |
| 3982 Kastel 3982 Kastel 3982 Kastel is a main-belt asteroid discovered on May 2, 1984 by L. G. Karachkina at Nauchnyj.- External links :*... |
? | S/2005 (3982) 1 | ? | ? |
| 4029 Bridges 4029 Bridges 4029 Bridges is a main-belt asteroid discovered on May 24, 1982 by Carolyn Shoemaker at Palomar.- External links :*... |
10 | S/2006 (4029) 1 | ? | ? |
| 4492 Debussy 4492 Debussy 4492 Debussy is a main belt asteroid. It was discovered on 17 September 1988 by Eric Elst. It is named after the French composer Claude Debussy. It is believed to measure approximately 10 km in diameter.... |
10 | S/2004 (4492) 1 | ? | 25 |
| 4674 Pauling 4674 Pauling 4674 Pauling is an inner main belt asteroid. It is a member of the Hungaria family. It was discovered by Eleanor F. Helin on 2 May 1989 from Palomar Observatory. Pauling measures about 8 km in diameter. It is named after the scientist Linus Pauling.... |
8 | S/2004 (4674) 1 | 2.5 | 250 |
| 4786 Tatianina 4786 Tatianina 4786 Tatianina is a main-belt asteroid discovered on August 13, 1985 by N. S. Chernykh at Nauchnyj.- External links :*... |
8? | S/2006 (4786) 1 | ? | ? |
| ~7 | S/2005 (5477) 1 | 2.5 | 15 | |
| 5905 Johnson 5905 Johnson 5905 Johnson is an inner main-belt asteroid discovered on February 11, 1989 by E. F. Helin at Palomar.- External links :*... |
5 | S/2005 (5905) 1 | 2 | ? |
| 6084 Bascom 6084 Bascom 6084 Bascom is a main-belt asteroid discovered on February 12, 1985 by C. S. Shoemaker and E. M. Shoemaker at Palomar. It is named for the American geologist Florence Bascom.... |
9? | S/2006 (6084) 1 | 3.5? | 32? |
| 6244 Okamoto 6244 Okamoto 6244 Okamoto is a main-belt asteroid discovered on August 20, 1990 by T. Seki at Geisei.- External links :*... |
7? | S/2006 (6244) 1 | 1.7? | 15? |
| 9069 Hovland 9069 Hovland 9069 Hovland is an inner main-belt asteroid discovered on July 16, 1993 by Eleanor F. Helin at Palomar.- External links :*... |
3 | S/2004 (9069) 1 | 0.9 | ? |
| 9260 Edwardolson 9260 Edwardolson 9260 Edwardolson is a main-belt asteroid discovered on October 8, 1953 by the Indiana Asteroid Program at Goethe Link Observatory, Brooklyn, Indiana. The name honors astronomer Edward C... |
~4 | S/2005 (9260) 1 | ? | ? |
| 9617 Grahamchapman 9617 Grahamchapman 9617 Grahamchapman is an asteroid in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. It was discovered on 17 March 1993, at the European Southern Observatory during the Uppsala-ESO Survey of Asteroids and Comets . It is named after the British comedian Graham Chapman, who died in 1989... |
5? | S/2006 (9617) 1 | 1.4? | ? |
| 11264 Claudiomaccone 11264 Claudiomaccone 11264 Claudiomaccone is a main belt asteroid orbiting the Sun. It was discovered in 1979 by Nikolai Chernykh and is named after the Italian astronomer Claudio Maccone.... |
4 | S/2003 (11264) 1 | 1.2 | ? |
| 4.5 | S/2004 (17246) 1 | 2 | ~230 | |
| 6? | S/2006 (17260) 1 | 1.5? | 10? | |
| 4.5 | S/2003 (22899) 1 | 1.5 | ~170 | |
| 3.6 | S/2005 (76818) 1 | 1.1 | ? |
Jupiter trojans
| Name | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 617 Patroclus 617 Patroclus 617 Patroclus is a binary minor planet made up of two similarly-sized objects orbiting their common centre of gravity. It is a Trojan asteroid, sharing an orbit with Jupiter. It was discovered in 1906 by August Kopff, and was the second trojan to be discovered... |
121.8 ± 3.2 | Menoetius (Patroclus I) | 112.6 ± 3.2 | 685 ± 40 |
| 624 Hektor 624 Hektor 624 Hektor is the largest Jupiter Trojan. It was discovered in 1907 by August Kopff.Hektor is a D-type asteroid, dark and reddish in colour. It lies in Jupiter's leading Lagrangian point, , called the 'Greek' node after one of the two sides in the legendary Trojan War... |
(363×207) | S/2006 (624) 1 | 15 | 1,000? |
Trans-Neptunian objects
| Name | Type | Diameter Diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle... (km) (or dimensions) |
Name of moon | Diameter of moon (km) (or dimensions) |
Separation (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 134340 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... |
Plutino Plutino In astronomy, a plutino is a trans-Neptunian object in 2:3 mean motion resonance with Neptune. For every 2 orbits that a plutino makes, Neptune orbits 3 times. Plutinos are named after Pluto, which follows an orbit trapped in the same resonance, with the Italian diminutive suffix -ino... |
2306±20 | Charon Charon (moon) Charon is the largest satellite of the dwarf planet Pluto. It was discovered in 1978 at the United States Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station. Following the 2005 discovery of two other natural satellites of Pluto , Charon may also be referred to as Pluto I... (Pluto I) |
1207±3 | 19,571±4 |
| Nix Nix (moon) Nix is a natural satellite of Pluto. It was discovered along with Hydra in June 2005, and is to be visited along with Pluto by the New Horizons mission in July 2015.- Discovery :... (Pluto II) |
44–130 | 48,675±120 | |||
| S/2011 P 1 S/2011 P 1 S/2011 P 1 is a small natural satellite of Pluto whose existence was announced on July 20, 2011... (Pluto IV) |
13–34 | 59,000±2,000 | |||
| Hydra Hydra (moon) Hydra is the second outermost known natural satellite of Pluto. It was discovered along with Nix in June 2005, and is to be visited along with Pluto by the New Horizons mission in July 2015.- Discovery :... (Pluto III) |
44–130 | 64,780±90 | |||
| Plutino | 221? | S/2001 (26308) 1 | 88 | 11,310 ± 110 | |
| 42355 Typhon 42355 Typhon 42355 Typhon is a scattered disc object that was discovered on February 5, 2002, by the NEAT program. It measures 134±13 km in diameter, and is named after Typhon, a monster in Greek mythology.... |
SDO Scattered disc The scattered disc is a distant region of the Solar System that is sparsely populated by icy minor planets, a subset of the broader family of trans-Neptunian objects. The scattered-disc objects have orbital eccentricities ranging as high as 0.8, inclinations as high as 40°, and perihelia greater... |
134 | Echidna (Typhon I) | 78 | 1,300? |
| Plutino | A1=286 A2=265 |
S/2001 (47171) 1 | 139 | 7411 ± 12 | |
| SDO | 352 | S/2005 (48639) 1 | 161 | 420 | |
| 50000 Quaoar 50000 Quaoar 50000 Quaoar is a rocky trans-Neptunian object in the Kuiper belt with one known moon. Discovered on June 4, 2002 by astronomers Chad Trujillo and Michael Brown at the California Institute of Technology from images acquired at the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory, it is thought by... |
Cubewano Cubewano A classical Kuiper belt object, also called a cubewano is a low-eccentricity Kuiper belt object that orbits beyond Neptune and is not controlled by an orbital resonance with Neptune. Cubewanos have orbits with semi-major axes in the 40–50 AU range and, unlike Pluto, do not cross Neptune’s orbit... |
<1100 | Weywot Weywot (moon) Weywot, officially Quaoar I Weywot, is the only known moon of the trans-Neptunian object Quaoar. Its discovery was reported in IAUC 8812 on 22 February 2007, based on imagery taken on 14 February 2006. The satellite was found at 0.35 arcsec from Quaoar with an apparent magnitude difference of 5.6... (Quaoar I) |
96? | ? |
| Cubewano | 649 | S/2007 (55637) 1 | 205 | ? | |
| 58534 Logos 58534 Logos 58534 Logos is a small Kuiper-belt object, more specifically a cubewano, notable for having a comparatively large satellite named Zoe. For a small, about 80 km in diameter, KBO it has a very high albedo... |
Cubewano | 80 | Zoe (Logos I) | 66 | 8,010 ± 80 |
| SDO | 150? | S/2006 (60458) 1 | 119? | 2,200? | |
| <-- see IAUC 8816 (http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/iauc/08800/08816.html, subscription required) --> | 2:5 resonance Resonant trans-Neptunian object In astronomy, a resonant trans-Neptunian object is a trans-Neptunian object in mean motion orbital resonance with Neptune. The orbital periods of the resonant objects are in a simple integer relations with the period of Neptune e.g. 1:2, 2:3 etc... |
151? | S/2007 (60621) 1 | 115? | 1,200 |
| 65489 Ceto 65489 Ceto 65489 Ceto , provisionally known as 2003 FX128, is a binary trans-Neptunian object discovered on March 22, 2003 by C. A. Trujillo and M. Brown at Palomar. It is named after the sea goddess Ceto from Greek mythology. The object was identified as a binary on April 11, 2006 by K. Noll, H. Levison, W.... |
SDO | 172 | Phorcys (Ceto I) | 134 | 1,840 |
| 66652 Borasisi 66652 Borasisi 66652 Borasisi , provisionally known as , is a trans-Neptunian object discovered in 1999 by A. Trujillo, J. Luu and D. Jewitt and identified as binary in 2003 by K... |
Cubewano | 166 | Pabu (Borasisi I) | 137 | 4,660 ± 170 |
| Cubewano | 305 | S/2005 (79360) 1 | 292 | 2300 | |
| Cubewano | 224 | S/2005 (80806) 1 | 129 | 2700 | |
| SDO | 431 | S/2005 (82075) 1 | 237 | 1900 | |
| 88611 Teharonhiawako 88611 Teharonhiawako 88611 Teharonhiawako is a trans-Neptunian object and a member of the Kuiper belt, measuring 156–196 km in diameter. It is a binary object, with a large companion named Sawiskera Teharonhiawako I Sawiskera), which at 108–136 km in diameter is about two-thirds the size of its ... |
Cubewano | 176 ± 20 | Sawiskera (Teharonhiawako I) | 122 ± 14 | 27,300 ± 343 |
| 90482 Orcus 90482 Orcus 90482 Orcus is a trans-Neptunian object in the Kuiper belt with a large moon. It was discovered on February 17, 2004 by Michael Brown of Caltech, Chad Trujillo of the Gemini Observatory, and David Rabinowitz of Yale University. Precovery images as early as November 8, 1951 were later identified... |
Plutino Plutino In astronomy, a plutino is a trans-Neptunian object in 2:3 mean motion resonance with Neptune. For every 2 orbits that a plutino makes, Neptune orbits 3 times. Plutinos are named after Pluto, which follows an orbit trapped in the same resonance, with the Italian diminutive suffix -ino... |
946 | Vanth (Orcus I) | 262 ± 170 | 8,700 |
| <-- see IAUC 8814 (http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/iauc/08800/08814.html, subscription required) --> | 1:2 resonance | 420? | S/2007 (119979) 1 | ? | ? |
| 120347 Salacia | Cubewano | 580? | Actaea (Salacia I) | 190? | 3,500? |
| Cubewano | 221? | S/2007 (123509) 1 | ? | ? | |
| Cubewano | 253? | S/2003 (134860) 1 | 175? | 2,300? | |
| 136108 Haumea | Cubewano | 1400 | Hiʻiaka Hi'iaka (moon) Hiiaka is the larger, outer moon of the dwarf planet Haumea.- Discovery and naming :Hiiaka was the first satellite discovered around Haumea. It is named after one of the daughters of Haumea, Hiiaka, the patron goddess of the Big Island of Hawaii, though at first it had gone by the nickname... (Haumea I) |
310 | 49,500 ± 400 |
| Namaka Namaka (moon) Namaka is the smaller, inner moon of the dwarf planet Haumea. It is named after Nāmaka, one of the daughters of Haumea, the goddess of the sea in Hawaiian mythology.- Discovery :Namaka was discovered on 30 June 2005 and announced on November 29, 2005... (Haumea II) |
170 | 39,300 | |||
| 136199 Eris Eris (dwarf planet) Eris, formal designation 136199 Eris, is the most massive known dwarf planet in the Solar System and the ninth most massive body known to orbit the Sun directly... |
SDO | 2326 | Dysnomia Dysnomia (moon) - References :... (Eris I) |
150–250 | 30,000–36,000 |
| Plutino | 171? | S/2004 (139775) 1 | 171? | 240? | |
| 148780 Altjira 148780 Altjira 148780 Altjira is a binary classical Kuiper belt object . The secondary, S/2007 1, is large compared to the primary, 246 km vs. 340 km. The Altjiran lightcurve is quite flat 148780 Altjira is a binary classical Kuiper belt object (cubewano). The secondary, S/2007 (148780) 1, is large compared to... |
Cubewano | 340? | S/2007 (148780) 1 | 246? | 5,800? |
| (182933) 2002 GZ31 | SDO | 187? | 118? | ~2,060 ± 270 | |
| (208996) 2003 AZ84 | Plutino | 686 +99/-96 | 68 ± 20 | 7,200 | |
| Cubewano | 133 ± 15 | 110 ± 12 | 22,300 ± 800 | ||
| Cubewano? | 168 | 93 | 2,200 | ||
| Cubewano | 120? | ? | 3,300? | ||
| Cubewano | 170 | 120 | 23,000 | ||
| Cubewano | 164? | 133 | 5,880 ± 200 | ||
| Cubewano? | 176? | 176? | 7,000? | ||
| Cubewano | 144? | 100? | 1,900? | ||
| Cubewano | 282? | 233? | 2,800? | ||
| Cubewano | 201? | 192? | 1,400? | ||
| Cubewano | 189 | 155 | 3,690 ± 70 | ||
| Cubewano | 86 | 86 | ~130,000 | ||
| Plutino | 265? | ? | 10,000? | ||
| SDO | 196 | 178 | 10,000 | ||
| Cubewano | 127 | 97 | 60,000 | ||
| <-- see IAUC 8816 (http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/iauc/08800/08816.html, subscription required) --> | Cubewano | 210? | 121? | 5,400 | |
| Cubewano | 240 | ? | 85,000 |
External links
- Orbits of Binary Asteroids with Adaptive Optics (Franck Marchis)
- Satellites and Companions of Minor Planets (CBAT)
- Asteroids with Satellites (Robert Johnston)