7066 Nessus facts for kids
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | David L. Rabinowitz |
| Discovery date | April 26, 1993 |
| Designations | |
| 1993 HA2 | |
| Centaur | |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch December 31, 2006 (JD 2454100.5) | |
| Aphelion | 5607.451 Gm (37.483 AU) |
| Perihelion | 1769.167 Gm (11.826 AU) |
| 3688.309 Gm (24.655 AU) | |
| Eccentricity | 0.520 |
| 44714.802 d (122.42 a) | |
|
Average orbital speed
|
5.57 km/s |
| 43.762° | |
| Inclination | 15.647° |
| 31.216° | |
| 170.814° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 60±16 km |
| Mass | ~1.6×1017 kg |
|
Mean density
|
2.0? g/cm³ |
|
Equatorial surface gravity
|
~0.0148 m/s² |
|
Equatorial escape velocity
|
~0.0280 km/s |
|
Sidereal rotation period
|
? d |
| ?° | |
|
Pole ecliptic latitude
|
? |
|
Pole ecliptic longitude
|
? |
| 0.06 | |
| Temperature | ~56 K |
| ? | |
| 9.6 | |
7066 Nessus is a small, icy space object. It belongs to a group called centaurs. These objects orbit the Sun between Jupiter and Neptune.
Nessus was found by David L. Rabinowitz on April 26, 1993. He was working with the Spacewatch project at Kitt Peak. Nessus was the second centaur he discovered. It was also the third centaur ever found.
Contents
What is a Centaur?
Centaurs are like a mix between asteroids and comets. They are icy bodies that orbit the Sun. Their orbits are often unstable because of the gravity from the giant planets.
Nessus's Journey Around the Sun
Nessus takes about 122.4 years to go around the Sun once. Its path is not a perfect circle. It is quite stretched out.
Closest and Farthest Points
When Nessus is closest to the Sun, this point is called perihelion. At perihelion, it gets closer to the Sun than Uranus. When it is farthest from the Sun, this point is called aphelion. At aphelion, Nessus travels even farther out than Neptune.
How its Orbit Changes
The orbits of centaurs like Nessus can change over time. This happens because of the strong gravity of the giant planets in our Solar System. Scientists believe Nessus's orbit will stay stable for a very long time.
