2000 DG8

2000 DG8 is a dark centaur and damocloid on a retrograde and highly eccentric orbit from the outer region of the Solar System.[5] It was first observed on 25 February 2000, by astronomers with the LINEAR program at the Lincoln Lab's ETS near Socorro, New Mexico, United States. It has not been observed since 2001.[1] The unusual object measures approximately 16 kilometers (9.9 miles) in diameter.[2][3]

2000 DG8
Discovery[1]
Discovered byLINEAR
Discovery siteLincoln Lab ETS
Discovery date25 February 2000
(first observed only)
Designations
2000 DG8
centaur[2] · damocloid[3]
unusual[4] · distant[1]
Orbital characteristics[2]
Epoch 27 April 2019 (JD 2458600.5)
Uncertainty parameter 4
Observation arc342 days
Aphelion19.305 AU
Perihelion2.2156 AU
10.760 AU
Eccentricity0.7941
35.30 yr (12,893 d)
186.76°
0° 1m 40.44s / day
Inclination129.25°
279.00°
222.05°
TJupiter-0.6220
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter
15.6±2.6 km[2][3]
17.28 km[5]: 11 
0.027[5]: 11 
0.053±0.017[2][3]
13.1[1][2]

    Discovery

    2000 DG8 was first observed on 25 February 2000, by astronomers of the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) at the Lincoln Laboratory's Experimental Test Site near Socorro, New Mexico, United States.[1]

    Orbit and classification

    2000 DG8 is a member of the dynamically unstable centaur and damocloid population.[2] Given the body's dark surface and its cometary-like orbit,[2][5] it may be a dormant comet.

    It orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.2–19.3 AU once every 35 years and 4 months (12,893 days; semi-major axis of 10.76 AU). Its orbit has a high eccentricity of 0.79 and an inclination of 129° with respect to the ecliptic.[2] With an inclination above 90°, It is one of about 100 known minor planets with a retrograde orbit around the Sun.[6] The object also has a negative Tisserand's parameter.[2]

    The body's observation arc begins with its first observation at Socorro in February 2000.[1] It was last observed in 2001 when it came to perihelion (closest approach to the Sun),[2] and will next come to perihelion in April 2036.

    Physical characteristics

    According to radiometric observations published in 2001 and 2005, 2000 DG8 measures approximately 15.6 and 17.28 kilometers in diameter, with a corresponding albedo 0.053 and 0.027, respectively.[2][5] As of 2018, no rotational lightcurve of this object has been obtained from photometric observations. The object's rotation period, pole and shape remain unknown.[2]

    Numbering and naming

    This minor planet has not been numbered by the Minor Planet Center and remains unnamed.[1]

    See also

    References
    1. "2000 DG8". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    2. "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (2000 DG8)" (2001-02-01 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    3. Johnston, Wm. Robert (7 October 2018). "List of Known Trans-Neptunian Objects". Johnston's Archive. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
    4. "List Of Other Unusual Objects". Minor Planet Center. 14 November 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    5. Fernández, Yanga R.; Jewitt, David C.; Sheppard, Scott S. (June 2001). "Low Albedos Among Extinct Comet Candidates". The Astrophysical Journal. 553 (2): L197–L200. arXiv:astro-ph/0104478. Bibcode:2001ApJ...553L.197F. doi:10.1086/320689. S2CID 55912038.
    6. "JPL Small-Body Database Search Engine: Asteroids and i > 90 (deg)". JPL Solar System Dynamics. Retrieved 15 November 2014.

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