Cybele asteroid facts for kids

The Cybele asteroids are in the outer main belt (shown in white), but inside of the Hilda family (brown)

The Cybele asteroids are a special group of asteroids. Asteroids are rocky objects that orbit the Sun, just like planets. This group of asteroids travels in a specific area of space, mainly found in the outer part of the asteroid belt.

What Are Cybele Asteroids?

Cybele asteroids are named after the first asteroid discovered in this group, called 65 Cybele. These asteroids share similar paths around the Sun. Scientists group them together because their orbits have certain characteristics.

Where Do They Orbit?

These asteroids orbit the Sun at a specific distance. Their "orbital radius" is usually between 3.27 and 3.7 AU. An astronomical unit (AU) is a way to measure distances in space. One AU is the average distance from the Earth to the Sun, which is about 150 million kilometers (93 million miles). So, Cybele asteroids are about 3 to 4 times farther from the Sun than Earth is.

What Makes Their Orbits Special?

The way an asteroid moves around the Sun is described by its orbit. For Cybele asteroids, two important features of their orbits are:

• Orbital eccentricity: This describes how "stretched out" or "circular" an orbit is. An eccentricity of 0 means a perfect circle. Cybele asteroids have an orbital eccentricity less than 0.3. This means their orbits are not very stretched out; they are somewhat circular.
• Orbital inclination: This is the "tilt" of an asteroid's orbit compared to Earth's orbit. Imagine Earth's path as a flat disc. The inclination tells you how much an asteroid's path is tilted up or down from that disc. For Cybele asteroids, this tilt is less than 25 degrees. This means their orbits are not tilted too steeply compared to the main plane where most planets orbit.

The Asteroid Belt

The asteroid belt is a huge donut-shaped region in our solar system. It is located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. This belt is home to millions of asteroids, ranging in size from tiny dust particles to objects hundreds of kilometers wide. The Cybele asteroids are just one of many groups found within this busy region of space.