Astronomy:1993 RP
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | David C. Jewitt Jane X. Luu |
| Discovery site | Mauna Kea Obs. |
| Discovery date | 15 September 1993 (discovery: first observed only) |
| Designations | |
| 1993 RP | |
| Minor planet category | TNO[2] · plutino[3] |
| Orbital characteristics[2] | |
| Epoch 16 September 1993 (JD 2449246.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 9 | |
| Observation arc | 2 days |
| |{{{apsis}}}|helion}} | 43 ± 5500 AU |
| |{{{apsis}}}|helion}} | 34 ± 450 AU |
| 39 ± 5000 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1 ± 124 |
| Inclination | 2.5 ± 192° |
| Longitude of ascending node | 192 ± 55° |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mean diameter | 70 km (est.)[3] |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 9.0[2] |
1993 RP might be a trans-Neptunian object, perhaps 70 kilometers (43 miles) in diameter, from the Kuiper belt in the outermost Solar System. However, the object has only a 2-day observation arc, making the data insufficient to provide virtually any idea of its true orbit. It was first observed on 15 September 1993, by astronomers at the Mauna Kea Observatory, one night after (385185) 1993 RO and the night before (15788) 1993 SB.
On the discovery date of 15 September 1993 the object was estimated to have been 34 astronomical unit|AU (5.1 billion km) from Earth with an uncertainty in the object's distance of ±200 billion km. Johnston's website generically lists it as a plutino, like Pluto, which are objects that stay in a 2:3 orbital resonance with Neptune.[3]
Briefly observed objects like 1993 RP generally have many possible orbits that fit the very small dataset. 1993 RP could be a TNO/centaur or a much closer main belt asteroid 100 times smaller in diameter. For example, 2004 PR107 was once thought to be a potential dwarf planet, but is now known to be a small main belt asteroid.
(As of 2018), the uncertainty in the object's distance from the Sun is ±7 trillion km (0.74 ly).
See also
References
- ↑ "1993 RP". Minor Planet Center. https://minorplanetcenter.net/db_search/show_object?object_id=1993+RP. Retrieved 8 September 2020.()
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (1993 RP)". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=3031955. Retrieved 29 July 2017.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "List of Known Trans-Neptunian Objects –1993 RP". Johnston's Archive. 18 August 2020. http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/astro/tnoslist.html. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
External links
- List of Transneptunian Objects, Minor Planet Center
- 1993 RP at the JPL Small-Body Database
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