(589683) 2010 RF43

Trans-Neptunian object September 2021 yes (589683) 2010 RF 43 possible dwarf planet 2010 RF43 Hubble.jpg 2010 RF 43 imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope in September 2026, the bright dot in the center is 2010 RF 43 D. L. RabinowitzM. SchwambS. Tourtellotte La Silla Obs. 6 September 2010 (589683) 2010 RF 43 TNOSDOdistant 31 May 2020 (JD 2459000.5) 2 46.17 yr (~16,860 days) 19 August 1976 61.903 AU 37.482 AU 49.692 AU 0.2457 350.30 yr (127,948 d) 97.520° 0.0028 ms / day 30.638° 25.320° 193.480° 0 656 km (estimate)611 km (estimate) 1.355682 20 kg (assumed) 0.124 (assumed)0.10 (assumed) g′–r′ 0.80 0.03g′–i′ 1.21 0.04r′–i 0.41 0.03 3.803.79 (589683) 2010 RF 43 is a large trans-Neptunian object orbiting in the scattered disc in the outermost regions of the Solar System. The object was discovered on 9 September 2010, by American astronomers David Rabinowitz, Megan Schwamb and Suzanne Tourtellotte at ESO's La Silla Observatory in northern Chile. The Hubble Space Telescope photographed 2010 RF 43 on 10 September 2026, during a search for moons around large trans-Neptunian objects. Orbit and classification 2010 RF 43 orbits the Sun at a distance of 37.5–61.9 AU once every 350 years and 4 months (127,948 days; semi-major axis of 49.7 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.25 and an inclination of 31° with respect to the ecliptic. The body's observation arc begins with a precovery observation taken at Siding Spring Observatory in August 1976. Due to its relatively high eccentricity and inclination, it is an object of the scattered disc rather than one of the regular Kuiper belt. However its perihelion of 37.5 AU is too low to make it a detached object, which typically stay above 40 AU and never come close to the orbit of Neptune. Numbering and naming This minor planet was numbered by the Minor Planet Center on 20 September 2021, receiving the number 589683 589683 in the minor planet catalog (M.P.C. 135075). January 2026, it has not been named. Physical characteristics Size, mass and brightness Johnston's Archive estimates a mean diameter of 656 km mi us 3. Mike Brown estimates a diameter of 611 km mi us 2. However, Mike Brown's estimate uses the outdated H of 4.2, not the newer 3.8. 2010 RF 43’s mass is unmeasured, as it is not known to have a moon, which means there is currently no way to measure its mass and density. However, assumptions can still be made. In a 2021 study, Muñoz Gutiérrez assumed a mass of 0.0227 -3 🜨 (which translates to 1.356 20 kg) for 2010 RF 43. Rotation period As of 2026, no rotational lightcurve of this object has been obtained from photometric observations. The object's rotation period, pole and shape remain unknown. In 2013, Benecchi and colleagues put an upper bound of 0.08 mag on its lightcurve amplitude. Surface and spectra 2010 RF 43 has color indices of: g′−r′ 0.80 ± 0.03, g′−i′ 1.21 ± 0.04, and r′−i′ 0.41 ± 0.03. Its albedo has not been measured, but it has been estimated to be 0.10, and 0.124. References 30em 2020-08-19 last obs. JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (2010 RF43) https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=3545742 Jet Propulsion Laboratory 28 August 2020 2010 RF43 Minor Planet Center https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/db_search/show_object?object_id=2010+RF43 27 August 2020 MPC/MPO/MPS Archive Minor Planet Center https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/ECS/MPCArchive/MPCArchive_TBL.html 30 September 2021 List Of Transneptunian Objects Minor Planet Center http://www.minorplanetcenter.org/iau/lists/TNOs.html 22 August 2020 List Of Centaurs and Scattered-Disk Objects Minor Planet Center https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/lists/t_centaurs.html 22 August 2020 List of Known Trans-Neptunian Objects Johnston's Archive 29 August 2021 Johnston Wm. Robert https://www.johnstonsarchive.net/astro/tnoslist.html 30 September 2021 How many dwarf planets are there in the outer solar system? California Institute of Technology Brown Michael E. https://web.gps.caltech.edu/~mbrown/dps.html 23 February 2018 Buie Marc W. Orbit Fit and Astrometric record for 10RF43 SwRI (Space Science Department) http://www.boulder.swri.edu/~buie/kbo/astrom/10RF43.html 23 February 2018 24 February 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20180224112853/http://www.boulder.swri.edu/~buie/kbo/astrom/10RF43.html dead A Search For The Moons of Mid-Sized TNOs https://www.stsci.edu/hst-program-info/download/hst/pdf/18010/ Benjamin Proudfoot Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes Space Telescope Science Institute August 2025 HST Proposal 18010 Cycle 33 2025-08-17 Marco A. Muñoz-Gutiérrez Antoni Peimbert Matthew J. Lehner Shiang-Yu Wang Long-term Dynamical Stability in the Outer Solar System. I. The Regular and Chaotic Evolution of the 34 Largest Trans-Neptunian Objects The Astronomical Journal October 2021 162 4 164 free 10.3847/1538-3881/ac1102 2107.00240 2021AJ....162..164M 235694711 etal W. M. Grundy W. B. McKinnon E. Ammannito M. Aung J. Bellerose F. Brenker Exploration Strategy for the Ice Dwarf Planets 2013-2022 https://www.lpi.usra.edu/decadal/sbag/community_wp/SB_Community_WP_Final_Dwarfs.pdf American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting 2009 December 2009 P43D-1471 2009AGUFM.P43D1471G dead https://web.archive.org/web/20250330030249/https://www.lpi.usra.edu/decadal/sbag/community_wp/SB_Community_WP_Final_Dwarfs.pdf 2025-03-30 Benecchi Susan D. Sheppard Scott S. 2013-03-25 Light curves of 32 large Transneptunian objects https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0004-6256/145/5/124 The Astronomical Journal 145 5 124 10.1088/0004-6256/145/5/124 0004-6256 1301.5791 External links MPEC 2011-U09 : 2010 RF43, Minor Planet Electronic Circular, 17 October 2011 2010RF43 589683 (589683) 2010 RF 43 589683 589683 589683 589683 589683 20100906