2000 DG8

2000 DG8
Discovery [1]
Discovered by LINEAR
Discovery site Lincoln Lab ETS
Discovery date 25 February 2000
(first observed only)
Designations
MPC designation 2000 DG8
centaur [2] · damocloid
distant [1]
Orbital characteristics [2]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 4
Observation arc (342 days)
Aphelion 19.306 AU
Perihelion 2.2137 AU
10.760 AU
Eccentricity 0.7943
35.29 yr (12,891 d)
169.73°
0° 1m 40.44s / day
Inclination 129.32°
279.08°
222.15°
TJupiter -0.624
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter
 15.6±2.6 km[2]
17.28 km[3]:11
0.027[3]:11
0.053±0.017[2]
13.1[2]

    2000 DG8 is a dark minor planet on a retrograde and highly eccentric orbit, classified as a member of the centaur and damocloid population, that is located in the outer Solar System.[3] Discovered by LINEAR in 2000, the object has not been observed since 2001.[1] It measures approximately 16 kilometers in diameter.[2]

    Discovery

    2000 DG8 was first observed on 25 February 2000, by astronomers of the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) at the Lincoln Laboratory's Experimental Test Site near Socorro, New Mexico, United States.[1]

    Orbit and classification

    2000 DG8 is a member of the dynamically unstable centaur and damocloid population.[2] Given the body's dark surface and its cometary-like orbit,[2][3] it may be a dormant comet.

    It orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.2–19.3 AU once every 35 years and 3 months (12,891 days; semi-major axis of 10.76 AU). Its orbit has a high eccentricity of 0.79 and an inclination of 129° with respect to the ecliptic.[2] With an inclination above 90°, It is one of about 100 known minor planets with a retrograde orbit around the Sun.[4] The object also has a negative Tisserand's parameter.[2]

    The body's observation arc begins with its first observation at Socorro in February 2000.[1] It was last observed in 2001 when it came to perihelion (closest approach to the Sun),[2] and will next come to perihelion in April 2036.

    Physical characteristics

    According to radiometric observations published in 2001 and 2005, 2000 DG8 measures approximately 15.6 and 17.28 kilometers in diameter, with a corresponding albedo 0.053 and 0.027, respectively.[2][3] As of 2018, no rotational lightcurve of this object has been obtained from photometric observations. The object's rotation period, pole and shape remain unknown.[2]

    Numbering and naming

    This minor planet has not been numbered by the Minor Planet Center and remains unnamed.[1]

    See also

    References

    1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "2000 DG8". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
    2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (2000 DG8)" (2001-02-01 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
    3. 1 2 3 4 5 Fernández, Yanga R.; Jewitt, David C.; Sheppard, Scott S. (June 2001). "Low Albedos Among Extinct Comet Candidates" (PDF). The Astrophysical Journal. 553 (2): L197–L200. arXiv:astro-ph/0104478. Bibcode:2001ApJ...553L.197F. doi:10.1086/320689. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
    4. ↑ "JPL Small-Body Database Search Engine: Asteroids and i > 90 (deg)". JPL Solar System Dynamics. Retrieved 2014-11-15.

    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.