Plutino
As Plutinos , not to be confused with Plutoiden be in the astronomy of those objects Kuiper Belt designated whose orbital elements with those of Pluto are comparable. These orbits are a 3: 2 - resonance to the orbit of the planet Neptune stabilized, that is, during three Neptunumläufe they orbit the sun twice. This synchronization avoids close encounters with Neptune, so that only such orbits around this extreme giant planet are stable over a longer period of time. Alongside the Twotinos, the Plutinos are the best-known resonant Kuiper belt objects .
The first four Plutinos were discovered on four consecutive days from September 14-17, 1993, 63 years after Pluto. Currently, the number of larger Plutinos (over 100 km) is estimated to be more than 1000. These estimates are still very vague, however, as only little data is available on the Kuiper Belt Objects (KBO).
Probable origin
During the formation of the solar system , planetesimals were hurled into the outer area (Kuiper belt and Oort cloud ) by the gas giants , which enlarged Neptune's orbit. By means of simulation calculations, it was possible to prove that on his way he "pushed" the objects already present in front of him in the 3: 2 resonance like a snow plow .
Well-known great Plutinos
Surname | diameter | major semi-axis | Perihelion | Aphelion | Orbital time | Orbit inclination | eccentricity | Opposition brightness 2008 | Opposition brightness in the perihelion |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
(134340) Pluto | 2374 km | 39.48 AU | 29.66 AU | 49.3 AU | 248 years | 17.2 ° | 0.249 | 14, m 1 | 13, m 8 |
Charon | 1208 km | Biggest moon of Pluto | |||||||
(90482) Orcus | 917 km | 39.45 AU | 30.84 AU | 48.07 AU | 248 years | 20.6 ° | 0.218 | 19, m 1 | 17, m 2 |
(28978) Ixion | 617 km | 39.56 AU | 30.00 AE | 49.11 AU | 249 years | 19.6 ° | 0.242 | 19, m 4 | 18, m 0 |
(38628) Huya | 406 km | 39.70 AU | 28.53 AU | 50.86 AU | 250 years | 15.5 ° | 0.281 | 19, m 3 | 19, m 3 |
(47171) Lempo |
(effective) |
393 km 39.24 AU | 30.55 AU | 47.93 AU | 246 years | 8.4 ° | 0.221 | 19, m 8 | 19, m 7 |
(15789) 1993 SC | 328 km | 39.37 AU | 32.12 AU | 46.62 AU | 247 years | 5.2 ° | 0.184 | 22, m 5 | 21, m 9 |
(15810) Arawn | 251 km | 39.60 AU | 34.75 AU | 44.45 AU | 249 years | 3.8 ° | 0.122 | ||
(15788) 1993 SB | 130 km | 39.22 AU | 26.73 AU | 51.7 | AU246 years | 1.9 ° | 0.319 | 22, m 4 | 21, m 9 |
(385185) 1993 RO | 90 km | 39.1 | AU31.48 AU | 46.7 | AU244 years | 3.7 ° | 0.195 | 23, m 0 | 22, m 9 |
See also
Web links
- David Jewitt (University of Hawaii) - Plutinos ( Memento of March 4, 2000 in the Internet Archive ) (English)