Kuiper Belt Object

This page has unreferenced sources

This page does not include any references or citations.
Please cite reliable and/or peer reviewed sources, that are not your brain. Unsourced material may be removed or deleted.

A Kuiper Belt Object (KBO) is a type of celestial object that resides in the Kuiper Belt, a region of the outer Solar System beyond the orbit of Neptune. KBOs are remnants from the early formation of the Solar System and are composed mainly of rock, water ice, and other volatiles. They come in various sizes, ranging from small icy bodies just a few kilometers across to large objects like Pluto, which is over 2,300 kilometers in diameter.

KBOs are classified into different categories based on their orbits and characteristics. Some common types include:

1. Classical KBOs: These have relatively stable, low-inclination, and low-eccentricity orbits. Examples include Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, and Orcus.
2. Resonant KBOs: These objects have orbits that are in resonance with Neptune, meaning their orbital periods are related to Neptune's orbital period in a specific ratio. For example, objects in a 2:3 resonance complete two orbits for every three orbits of Neptune. Pluto is a notable example of a resonant KBO, being in a 2:3 resonance with Neptune.