(709487) 2013 BL76 is a trans-Neptunian object and centaur[4] from the scattered disk and Inner Oort cloud approximately 30 kilometers in diameter.

(709487) 2013 BL76
The orbits of some of the most distant minor planets, 2013 BL76 at top left
Discovery[1][2][3]
Discovered byMt. Lemmon Survey
Discovery date20 January 2013
Designations
2013 BL76
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 1
Observation arc1.88 yr (687 days)
Aphelion
Perihelion8.3622 AU
  • 1080.07 AU
  • ~964 AU[a]
Eccentricity0.9923
  • 35,496 yr (12,965,058 d)
  • ~29900 yr[a]
  • last perihelion: 2012-10-27
0.0493°
0° 0m 0s / day
Inclination98.613°
180.20°
165.96°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions
22.1[7]
10.8[1][5]

Using an epoch of February 2017, it is the minor planet with the 5th largest heliocentric semi-major axis in the Solar System (larger ones include 2014 FE72, 2012 DR30, and 2005 VX3).[8] 2013 BL76 has a barycentric semi-major axis of ~964 AU,[9][a] which is the third largest barycentric semi-major axis of any minor planet.

Possible comet

edit

With an absolute magnitude (H) of 10.8[5] and an unknown albedo, the object has an estimated diameter of 15–40 km.[6] Since it has not been seen out-gassing, it is not known if it is a comet or not. It might also be a damocloid, a type of minor planet that was originally a comet but lost most of its near-surface volatile materials after numerous orbits around the Sun. It also might be a dormant comet that simply has not been seen outgassing.

Orbit

edit

2013 BL76 came to perihelion 8.3 AU from the Sun on 27 October 2012, when it reached an apparent magnitude of about 20.[2] In 1927, when it was 100 AU from the Sun, it had an apparent magnitude of about 30.8.[11] For comparison dwarf planet 90377 Sedna had an apparent magnitude of 21.7 when it was 100 AU from the Sun.[12] It comes to opposition at the start of September.

It will not be 50 AU from the Sun until 2045. After leaving the planetary region of the Solar System, 2013 BL76 will have a barycentric aphelion of 1920 AU with an orbital period of 29900 years.[a]

The orbit of 2013 BL76 currently comes closer to Saturn than any of the other giant planets.[5] In a 10 million year integration of the orbit, the nominal (best-fit) orbit acquires a perihelion point of 0.5 AU (inside the orbit of Venus), and one of the 3-sigma clones acquires a perihelion point of only 0.008 AU (1,200,000 km).[4]

2013 BL76 travels in a technically retrograde orbit around the Sun. It is actually orbiting in a plane nearly perpendicular to that of the ecliptic. It has the 55th highest inclination of any known asteroid, after 2010 GW147 and before 2014 HS150.

Comparison

edit
 
The orbits of Sedna, 2012 VP113, Leleākūhonua, and other very distant objects along with the predicted orbit of Planet Nine. The three sednoids (pink) along with the red-colored extreme trans-Neptunian object (eTNO) orbits are suspected to be aligned with the hypothetical Planet Nine while the blue-colored eTNO orbits are anti-aligned. The highly elongated orbits colored brown include centaurs and damocloids with large aphelion distances over 200 AU.
Orbital evolution
Epoch Barycentric
Aphelion (Q)
(AU)
Orbital
period
yr
1950 1849 28300
2050 1920 29900

Largest semimajor axes of minor planets

edit
Similar bodies
Minor planet desig. Semi-
major
axis
Semi-
major
axis
(bary)
Perihelion Aphelion Aphelion
(bary)
Abs.
mag.

(H)
Diameter
(km)
Orb.
uncert.

(0–9)[b]
No. obs.
(arc days)
2002 GB32 213 206.7 35.3420 390 378
  • 7.8
  • (7.7)
120 3 26 (4733)
(82158) 2001 FP185 220 216 34.2340 406 398 6.0 265 3 50 (2461)
2012 KA51 224 190 4.9 444 380 11.1 15 9 12 (6)
(148209) 2000 CR105 229.8 222.2 44.2000 415.5 400.4 6.3 320 3 54 (3242)
(468861) 2013 LU28 230 230 8.698 460 451.5 7.9 115 5 56 (385)
2006 UL321 261 257 23.5 498 490.5 7.6 125 9 3 (1)
2012 VP113 265 263.158 80.4500 448 445.88 4.0 460 5 26 (739)
1996 PW 267 240 2.5557 532 480 14.0 7 2 250 (506)
2011 OR17 (2010 KZ127) 272 270 3.0987 550 540 13.1 10 1 101 (748)
2013 RF98 320 316.7 36.288 603 597
  • 8.6
  • (8.64±0.34175)
90 5 38 (56)
(336756) 2010 NV1 322.7 286 9.41587 635.9 562 10.6 34 1 147 (1815)
474640 Alicanto 328.8 327.3 47.3324 610.3 607.3 6.4 314 2 28 (3611)
(418993) 2009 MS9 349.55 352.5 11.00317 688.1 694
  • 10.0
  • (9.9)
42 1 134 (1995)
2010 GB174 367 351.1 48.5600 686 653.7 6.5 223 3 18 (965)
2007 DA61 475 500 2.6550 950 900
  • 15.1
  • (14.913±0.470)
4.5 4 78 (29)
2010 BK118 490 385 6.1050 980 770 10.2 38 1 292 (1319)
90377 Sedna 524.2 505.88 76.094 972.4 935.6 1.5 1000 2 90 (8819)
2007 TG422 530 501.8 35.5830 1030 968 6.2 343 2 34 (1956)
(87269) 2000 OO67 570 555 20.7900 1100 1110 9.2 60 2 34 (2187)
2002 RN109 720 850 2.7040 1440 1201 15.3 4 3 38 (80)
(308933) 2006 SQ372 765 792 24.172 1500 1585 8.1 110 2 65 (1830)
2013 AZ60 880 593 7.908 1700 1176 10.2 62.3 1 189 (8067)
2013 BL76 1251 940 8.37358 2494 1825 10.8 35 1 68 (687)
2012 DR30 (2009 FW54) 1300 1036 14.546 2600 2030 7.1 171 0 206 (5375)
2005 VX3 1300 1200 4.133 2700 2038 14.1 6 4 50 (81)
2014 FE72 2000 1500 36.3 4000 3000 6.0789±0.1699 226 5 12 (623)

Notes

edit
  1. ^ a b c d e Given the orbital eccentricity of this object, different epochs can generate quite different heliocentric unperturbed two-body best-fit solutions to the semi-major axis and orbital period. For objects at such high eccentricity, the Sun's barycenter is more stable than a heliocentric solution.[10] Using JPL Horizons, the barycentric semi-major axis is approximately 964 AU.[9]
  2. ^ 0–3 is high-certainty and well constrained, 9 is low-certainty and probably lost.

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (2013 BL76)" (last observation: 2014-08-25; arc: 1.88 years). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Archived from the original on 4 January 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  2. ^ a b "2013 BL76". Seicchi Yoshida's Home Page. Archived from the original on 15 January 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  3. ^ "MPEC 2013-C12 : 2013 BL76". IAU Minor Planet Center. 3 February 2013. Retrieved 14 October 2013. (K13B76L)
  4. ^ a b c Marc W. Buie. "Orbit Fit and Astrometric record for 13BL76". SwRI (Space Science Department). Archived from the original on 6 February 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  5. ^ a b c d "2013 BL76". IAU minor planet center. Archived from the original on 12 July 2013. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  6. ^ a b "Absolute Magnitude (H)". NASA/JPL. Archived from the original on 2 March 2001. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
  7. ^ "AstDyS 2013BL76 Ephemerides". Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, Italy. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  8. ^ "JPL Small-Body Database Search Engine: Asteroids and a > 100 (AU)". JPL Solar System Dynamics. Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 13 October 2013. (Epoch defined at will change every 6 months or so)
  9. ^ a b Horizons output. "Barycentric Osculating Orbital Elements for 2013 BL76". Retrieved 6 March 2014. (Solution using the Solar System Barycenter and barycentric coordinates. Select Ephemeris Type:Elements and Center:@0)
  10. ^ Kaib, Nathan A.; Becker, Andrew C.; Jones, R. Lynne; Puckett, Andrew W.; Bizyaev, Dmitry; Dilday, Benjamin; Frieman, Joshua A.; Oravetz, Daniel J.; Pan, Kaike; Quinn, Thomas; Schneider, Donald P.; Watters, Shannon (2009). "2006 SQ372: A Likely Long-Period Comet from the Inner Oort Cloud". The Astrophysical Journal. 695 (1): 268–275. arXiv:0901.1690. Bibcode:2009ApJ...695..268K. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/695/1/268. S2CID 16987581.
  11. ^ "AstDys 2013BL76 Ephemerides for 1927 (when 100AU from Sun)". Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, Italy. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
  12. ^ "AstDys (90377) Sedna Ephemerides for 1975 (when 100AU from Sun)". Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, Italy. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
edit