7066 Nessus

asteroid

7066 Nessus is a centaur (a type of icy planetoid) that was found by David L. Rabinowitz, working with Spacewatch, at Kitt Peak on April 26 1993. It was the second centaur found by him (5145 Pholus being his first), and the third centaur to be found (2060 Chiron was the first). It was officially announced on May 13, 1993 in IAUC 5789 with designation 1993 HA2.

7066 Nessus
Discovery
Discovered byDavid L. Rabinowitz
Discovery dateApril 26, 1993
Designations
1993 HA2
Centaur
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch December 31, 2006 (JD 2454100.5)
Aphelion5607.451 Gm (37.483 AU)
Perihelion1769.167 Gm (11.826 AU)
3688.309 Gm (24.655 AU)
Eccentricity0.520
44714.802 d (122.42 a)
5.57 km/s
43.762°
Inclination15.647°
31.216°
170.814°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions60±16 km[2][3]
Mass~1.6×1017 kg
Mean density
2.0? g/cm³
Equatorial surface gravity
~0.0148 m/s²
Equatorial escape velocity
~0.0280 km/s
? d
?
?
0.06[2]
Temperature~56 K
?
9.6[1]

Orbit change

Nessus finishes one orbit around the Sun in 122.4 years, an eccentricity of 0.52 and an inclination to the ecliptic of 15.6 degrees. At perihelion (closest approach to the Sun), it moves closer to the Sun than Uranus, while at aphelion (farthest approach to the Sun) it goes even farther than Neptune.

The orbits of centaurs change from time to time because of interactions with the giant planets. Nessus is thought to have a fairly long orbital half-life of about 4.9 Myr.[4]

References change

  1. 1.0 1.1 "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 7066 Nessus (1993 HA2)". May 26, 2004. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Stansberry, John; Grundy, Will; Brown, Mike; Cruikshank, Dale; Spencer, John; Trilling, David; Margot, Jean-Luc (February 20, 2007). "Physical Properties of Kuiper Belt and Centaur Objects: Constraints from Spitzer Space Telescope". arXiv:astro-ph/0702538.
  3. Johnston, Wm. Robert (August 22, 2008). "List of Known Trans-Neptunian Objects". Johnston's Archive. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
  4. Horner, J.; Evans, N. W.; Bailey, M. E. (November 1, 2004). "Simulations of the population of Centaurs – I. The bulk statistics". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 354 (3): 798–810. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2004.08240.x. ISSN 0035-8711. S2CID 16002759. Retrieved June 24, 2022.

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