(310071) 2010 KR59

(310071) 2010 KR₅₉, also written as 2010 KR59, is a minor planet classified by the Minor Planet Center as a centaur.^[1] The object is trapped in a 1:1 mean motion resonance with Neptune.^[2]

Discovery

(310071) 2010 KR₅₉ was discovered on May 18, 2010 at 7:45 UT by the WISE spacecraft.^[3] The WISE telescope scanned the entire sky in infrared light from January 2010 to February 2011.

Orbit

(310071) 2010 KR₅₉ follows a very eccentric orbit (eccentricity of 0.57) with a semi-major axis of 29.97 AU and an inclination of 19.76º. Its aphelion goes into the trans-neptunian belt but its perihelion is relatively close to Saturn's orbit.^[4]

Physical properties

(310071) 2010 KR₅₉ is a rather large minor body with an absolute magnitude of H=7.7 that translates into a diameter close to 100 km.^[4]

Co-orbital with Neptune

(310071) 2010 KR₅₉ follows a complicated and short-lived horseshoe orbit around Neptune. Classical horseshoe orbits include the Lagrangian points L3, L4 and L5, this object horseshoe path goes from the L4 point towards Neptune reaching the L5 point and back. It will become a quasi-satellite of Neptune in about 5,000 years.^[2]

References

External links

• 2010 KR59, Scotti, J. V., During, D. T., Nshimiyimana, M., Tholen, D. J., Grauer, A. D., Ahern, J. D., Beshore, E. C., Boattini, A., Garradd, G. J., Gibbs, A. R., Hill, R. E., Kowalski, R. A., Larson, S. M., McNaught, R. H., Ryan, W. H., Holmes, R., Foglia, S., Mainzer, A., Wright, E., Bauer, J., Grav, T., Dailey, J., Masiero, J., Cutri, R., McMillan, R., & Walker, R. 2010, Minor Planet Electronic Circular, 2010-K66
• Four temporary Neptune co-orbitals: (148975) 2001 XA255, (310071) 2010 KR59, (316179) 2010 EN65, and 2012 GX17 de la Fuente Marcos, C., & de la Fuente Marcos, R. 2012, Astronomy and Astrophysics, Volume 547, id.L2, 7 pp.
• (310071) 2010 KR₅₉ data at MPC
• IAU list of centaurs and scattered-disk objects
• IAU list of trans-neptunian objects
• Another list of TNOs