(139775) 2001 QG298

(139775) 2001 QG₂₉₈

Discovery
Discovered by	Marc William Buie
Discovery date	August 16, 2001
Designations
MPC designation	(139775) 2001 QG298
Minor planet category	Plutino (MPC)
Orbital characteristics
Epoch 2016-Jan-13.0 (JD 2457400.5)
Aphelion	46.642 AU
Perihelion	31.758 AU
Semi-major axis	39.200 AU
Eccentricity	0.190
Orbital period	245.43 a (89,645.031 d)
Mean anomaly	7.386°
Inclination	6.500 °
Longitude of ascending node	162.610°
Argument of perihelion	309.327°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions	122 km
Mean density	0.6–0.7 g/cm3
Sidereal rotation period	13.7744 ± 0.0004 h
Albedo	0.04 (assumed)
Spectral type	V−R=0.60 ± 0.02, B−V=1.00 ± 0.04
Absolute magnitude (H)	6.85

(139775) 2001 QG₂₉₈ is a trans-Neptunian object (TNO) that resides in the Kuiper belt and was discovered on August 16, 2001 by Marc William Buie at Cerro Tololo Observatory. It is classified as a plutino, which means that it is in the 3:2 mean motion resonance with Neptune.

Physical properties

(139775) 2001 QG₂₉₈ is a small plutino occupying the 3:2 mean motion resonance with Neptune. Its size is estimated at 122 km assuming a comet-like albedo of about 4%.

(139775) 2001 QG₂₉₈ has a double peaked light curve with a large amplitude, which has changed from 1.14 in 2003 to 0.7 in 2010. This large amplitude implies that it is actually a contact binary consisting of two elongated components of approximately equal size viewed from almost the equatorial perspective. The size of the components separated by the distance of approximately 300 km will be then about 95 km each. The density of (139775) 2001 QG₂₉₈ should be at least 0.6–0.7 g/cm³ for it to remain bound.

External links

• Orbital simulation from JPL (Java) / Horizons Ephemeris