2017 OF69

2017 OF69
Orbit with other large Plutinos
Discovery [1][2]
Discovered by D. J. Tholen
S. S. Sheppard
C. Trujillo
Discovery site Mauna Kea Obs.
Discovery date 26 July 2017
(first observed only)
Designations
MPC designation 2017 OF69
TNO [3] · Plutino
Orbital characteristics [3]
Epoch 23 March 2018 (JD 2458200.5)
Uncertainty parameter 7[3] · 2[2]
Observation arc 295 days
Earliest precovery date 10 June 2012
Aphelion 47.78±0.45 AU
Perihelion 31.32±0.60 AU
39.55±0.37 AU
Eccentricity 0.208±0.023
248.7±3.5 yr
(90840±1300 days)
248.8°±9.1°
0° 0m 14.4s / day
Inclination 13.653°
218.48°±0.07°
216°±5.3°
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter
 380–680 km (est.)[lower-alpha 1]
20.5
4.0905±0.12195[3]
4.6[2]

    2017 OF69 is a large plutino (a trans-Neptunian object making 2 orbits for every 3 Neptune makes, as Pluto does) and likely dwarf planet orbiting in the inner Kuiper belt. It was first observed on 26 July 2017, by American astronomers David Tholen, Scott Sheppard, and Chad Trujillo at Mauna Kea Observatories in Hawaii, but not announced until 31 May 2018 due to observations made in April and May 2018 refining its orbit significantly.[1]

    Description

    2017 OF69 is extremely large (roughly 380−680 kilometers in diameter) for how recently it was discovered, being the fifth largest plutino in the Solar System, after Pluto, 90482 Orcus, (208996) 2003 AZ84, and 28978 Ixion, and the largest discovered since Orcus in 2004. It is unknown exactly why no surveys had discovered it previously, as it is neither in a particularly dense region of the sky, nor far enough south that most northern hemisphere-based surveys would ignore it, being only 5-6 degrees south of the celestial equator. It is highly unlikely any bodies as large as 2017 OF69 remain undetected in the plutino region.

    Numbering and naming

    This minor planet has neither been numbered nor named.

    Notes

    1. ↑ assuming a typical asteroid geometric albedo of between 0.05 and 0.3

    References

    1. 1 2 "MPEC 2018-K109L 2017 OF69". Minor Planet Center. International Astronomical Union. 31 May 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
    2. 1 2 3 "2017 OF69". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
    3. 1 2 3 4 "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (2017 OF69)" (2018-05-17 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 1 June 2018.

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