Gonggong, officially designated as 225088 Gonggong, also known as 2007 OR10, is a Trans-Neptunian object and possible dwarf planet[1] orbiting the Sun in the scattered disc, approximately 1,230 kilometers in diameter. It is the first major body in the solar system to have a Chinese name. It is the fifth-largest known body in the Solar System beyond the orbit of Neptune. According to estimates as of May 2016, it is slightly smaller than Makemake, and is hence almost certainly a dwarf planet. It has one known moon, approximately 300 kilometers (190 miles) in diameter.
Moon
Main Article: Xiangliu
The slow rotation rate of Gonggong, compared to the other TNOs, raised the possibility of a satellite that slowed down the rotation via tidal dissipation. In 2016, analysis of Hubble images of Gonggong taken in 2010 revealed a satellite around 300 km in diameter and orbiting at a distance of at least 15,000 km. It was announced at the DPS48 meeting on 17 October 2016. The satellite is probably too small and dark to affect size estimates for Gonggong. Further analysis from May 2017 confirms this orbiting moon.
Gallery
References
- ↑ TRIENNIAL REPORT 2018-2021, written by Gonzalo Tancredi et al., 2021.
| The Planets and Dwarf Planets | |
|---|---|
| Planets | |
| Inner: (Mercury • Venus • Earth • Mars) Outer: (Jupiter • Saturn • Uranus • Neptune) | |
| Dwarf Planets (and candidates) | |
| Ceres • Pluto • Haumea • Makemake • Quaoar • Orcus • Eris • Gonggong • Sedna | |