(118228) 1996 TQ66

Trans-Neptunian object September 2021 yes (118228) 1996 TQ 66 #C2E0FF J. ChenD. C. JewittC. TrujilloJ. X. Luu Mauna Kea Obs. 8 October 1996 (118228) 1996 TQ 66 TNOplutino 1 July 2021 (JD 2459396.5) 2 24.17 yr (8,828 d) 44.219 AU 34.535 AU 39.377 AU 0.1230 247.10 yr (90,254 d) 33.659° 0.0040 ms / day 14.650° 10.613° 18.541° 185 km (est. at 0.09) RR (very red) B–V 1.190 0.020 V–R 0.660 0.030 V–I 1.440 0.140 22.85 7.14 (118228) 1996 TQ 66 is a resonant trans-Neptunian object of the plutino population in the Kuiper belt, located in the outermost region of the Solar System. It was discovered on 8 October 1996, by American astronomers Jun Chen, David Jewitt, Chad Trujillo, and Jane Luu, using the UH88 telescope at the Mauna Kea Observatories, Hawaii. The very red object measures approximately 185 km mi off 2 us in diameter. Orbit and classification 1996 TQ 66 orbits the Sun at a distance of 34.5–44.2 AU once every 247 years and 1 month (90,254 days; semi-major axis of 39.38 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.12 and an inclination of 15° with respect to the ecliptic. The body's observation arc begins with its official discovery observation at the Mauna Kea Observatories on 8 October 1996. It came to perihelion in 1998. 2021, it is at 35.6 AU from the Sun and has an apparent magnitude of 22.85. 1996 TQ 66 is a trans-Neptunian object and belongs to the plutino population, a large group of objects named after their largest member, Pluto. These resonant trans-Neptunian objects stay in a 2:3 mean-motion orbital resonance with Neptune, orbiting exactly two times the Sun for every three orbits Neptune does and are therefore protected from Neptune's scattering effect. Plutinos are located in the inner rim of the Kuiper belt, a large circumstellar disc of mostly non-resonant classical Kuiper belt objects. Numbering and naming 1996 TQ 66 was numbered by the Minor Planet Center on 16 November 2005, receiving the number 118228 118228 in the minor planet catalog (M.P.C. 55524). 2025, it has not been named. According to the established naming conventions, it will be given a mythological name associated with the underworld. Physical characteristics Color 1996 TQ 66 has a very red surface color (RR) in the visible part of the spectrum, with B−V and V–R color indices of 1.190 0.020 and 0.660 0.030, respectively, for a combined B−R magnitude of 1.85. A red surface color is typically associated with the presence of tholins, polymer-like organic compounds, formed by long exposures to solar and cosmic radiation. Rotation period In 1999, results of a photometric survey of Kuiper belt objects by Romanishin and Tegler were published in the journal Nature. For 1996 TQ 66, a brightness variation of no more than 0.22 in magnitude could be determined, which is indicative of a modestly irregular shape. 2021, no rotational lightcurve for this object has been obtained from photometry. The body's rotation period, pole and actual shape remain unknown. Diameter and albedo Based on a generic magnitude-to-diameter conversion, 1996 TQ 66 measures approximately 185 km mi off 2 us in diameter, for an assumed albedo of 0.9 and a magnitude of 7. According to Mike Brown, who estimates a mean-diameter of 186 km mi on 2 us, the object is too small for being considered a dwarf planet candidate ("probably not"). References 30em 2020-12-09 last obs. JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 118228 (1996 TQ66) https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2118228 Jet Propulsion Laboratory 10 September 2021 118228 (1996 TQ66) Minor Planet Center https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/db_search/show_object?object_id=118228 10 September 2021 MPC/MPO/MPS Archive Minor Planet Center https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/ECS/MPCArchive/MPCArchive_TBL.html 10 September 2021 MPEC 1997-N09 : 1996 TQ66 Minor Planet Electronic Circular Minor Planet Center 7 July 1997 https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/mpec/J97/J97N09.html 9 September 2021 Naming of Astronomical Objects – Minor planets IAU – International Astronomical Union https://www.iau.org/public/themes/naming/#minorplanets 27 July 2021 31 October 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20131031154417/https://www.iau.org/public/themes/naming/#minorplanets dead Orbit Fit and Astrometric record for 118228 Southwest Research Institute https://www.boulder.swri.edu/~buie/kbo/astrom/118228.html 10 September 2021 List of Known Trans-Neptunian Objects Johnston's Archive 18 August 2020 http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/astro/tnoslist.html 10 September 2021 Asteroid Size Estimator CNEOS NASA/JPL https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/ast_size_est.html 10 September 2021 Asteroid (118228) 1996 TQ66 – Ephemerides AstDyS-2, Asteroids – Dynamic Site https://newton.spacedys.com/astdys/index.php?pc=1.1.3.0&n=118228 10 September 2021 How many dwarf planets are there in the outer solar system? California Institute of Technology Brown Michael E. http://web.gps.caltech.edu/~mbrown/dps.html 10 September 2021 118228 10 September 2021 Belskaya Irina N. Barucci Maria A. Fulchignoni Marcello Dovgopol Anatolij N. April 2015 Updated taxonomy of trans-neptunian objects and centaurs: Influence of albedo Icarus 250 482–491 2015Icar..250..482B 0019-1035 10.1016/j.icarus.2014.12.004 Romanishin W. Tegler S. C. March 1999 Rotation rates of Kuiper-belt objects from their light curves Nature 398 6723 129–132 1999Natur.398..129R 0028-0836 10.1038/18168 4313184 External links MPEC 1997-N20 : 1996 TQ66, Minor Planet Electronic Circular (118228) 1996 TQ66, Small Bodies Data Ferret Kuiper Belt Object Magnitudes and Surface Colors, Stephen C. Tegler (archived) List of Transneptunian Objects, Minor Planet Center Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (115001)–(120000), Minor Planet Center 118228 118228 (118228) 1996 TQ 66 118228 Category:Discoveries by Chad Trujillo 118228 118228 118228 19961008