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(91205) 1998 US43 (provisional designation 1998 US43) is a resonant trans-Neptunian object of the plutino group, located in the Kuiper belt in the outermost region of the Solar System. The rather bluish body measures approximately 111 kilometers (69 miles) in diameter.[3] It was discovered on 22 October 1998, by American astronomer Marc Buie at the Kitt Peak National Observatory in the United States.[1] It is probably not a dwarf planet candidate.[4]
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | M. W. Buie |
| Discovery site | Kitt Peak National Obs. |
| Discovery date | 22 October 1998 |
| Designations | |
| (91205) 1998 US43 | |
| 1998 US43 | |
| TNO[2] · plutino[3] distant[1] | |
| Orbital characteristics[2] | |
| Epoch 27 April 2019 (JD 2458600.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 4 | |
| Observation arc | 17.29 yr (6,314 d) |
| Aphelion | 44.196 AU |
| Perihelion | 33.932 AU |
| 39.064 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1314 |
| 244.16 yr (89,179 d) | |
| 66.411° | |
| 0° 0m 14.4s / day | |
| Inclination | 10.628° |
| 223.94° | |
| 138.70° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| 111 km (est.)[3] 154 km (est.)[4] | |
| 0.04 (assumed)[4] 0.09 (assumed)[3] | |
| BB–BR[3] B–R = 1.185[5] B–V = 0.691[5] R–I = 0.323[5] V–R = 0.494[5] | |
| 8.0[1][2] | |
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1998 US43 belongs to the plutino population,[3] a large population of resonant trans-Neptunian objects named after the group's largest member, Pluto. Thus, 1998 US43 is in a 2:3 orbital resonance with Neptune, orbiting the Sun twice for every three times Neptune does.
It orbits the Sun with a semi-major axis of 39.06 AU, a perihelion of 33.9 AU, and an aphelion of 44.2 AU, completing an orbit once every 244 years and 2 months (89,179 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.13 and an inclination of 11° with respect to the ecliptic.[2] The body's observation arc begins with its official discovery observation. Its orbit still has a fair amount of uncertainty.[1]
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This minor planet was numbered by the Minor Planet Center on 28 October 2004 (M.P.C. 52912).[6] As of 2018, it has not been named.[1]
Based on an absolute magnitude of 8.0 and an assumed albedo of 0.09, the Johnston's Archive estimates a diameter of 111 kilometers.[3] The body's spectrum (BB–BR) suggests a somewhat bluish color.[3] As of 2018, no rotational lightcurve of 1998 US43 has been obtained from photometric observations.[2][7] 1998 US43 it an unlikely dwarf planet candidate due to its small size, estimated by Michael Brown to measure 154 kilometers with a low albedo of 0.04.[4]
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