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Friday 6 April 2012

(90568) 2004 GV9 - 21th Largest TNO? 8th Largest Cubewano ?

2004 GV9 is a large trans-Neptunian object. 2004 GV9 is possibly the 21th largest TNO and 8th largest Cubewano currently known.

Discovery

2004 GV9 was discovered on April 13, 2004, by the Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking (NEAT) at Palomar.

2004 GV9 has been observed 47 times with precovery images back to 1954.

Stats

Estimated Diameter: 677 km (677 ± 70 km)
Aphelion: 45.74 AU
Perihelion: 38.7 AU
Semi-major axis: 41.81 AU
Orbital Period: 270.37 years
Rotation period: 5.86 hours
Date discovered: 2004.4.13
Satellite: 0
Classification: TNO, KBO - Cubewano

Physical Characteristics

Very little is known about 2004 GV9.

How big is it?

2004 GV9 is so far away in the outer solar system that we don't know for sure how large it is. Because all we see is a dot of light, which is sunlight reflected off the surface of the TNO. But we don't know if the object is bright because it is large or if it is bright because it is highly reflective or both.

Dwarf planet candidate?

2004 GV9 is very likely a dwarf planet. The Spitzer Space Telescope has estimated it to have a diameter of 677 ± 70 km. Light-curve-amplitude analysis shows only small deviations, suggesting that 2004 GV9 could be a spheroid with small albedo spots and hence a dwarf planet.

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