20000 Varuna

This article is about the minor planet. For other uses, see Varuna (disambiguation).

20000 Varuna
Hubble Space Telescope image of Varuna, taken in 2005
Discovery[1]
Discovered bySpacewatch
(Robert McMillan)
Discovery date28 November 2000
Designations
(20000) Varuna
Pronunciation/ˈværənə/ VARR-ə-nə[2]
Named after
Varuna
2000 WR106
TNO · cubewano[3]
Scat-Ext[4]
AdjectivesVarunian /vəˈruːniən/[5]
Symbol (astrological)
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 31 May 2020 (JD 2459000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 2
Observation arc64.49 yr (23,555 days)
Earliest precovery date24 November 1954
Aphelion45.117 AU (6.7494 Tm)
Perihelion40.319 AU (6.0316 Tm)
42.718 AU (6.3905 Tm)
Eccentricity0.05617
279.21 yr (101,980 d)
4.53 km/s
119.121°
0° 0m 12.708s / day
Inclination17.221°
97.372°
262.220°
Neptune MOID12.040 AU (1.8012 Tm)[6]
Physical characteristics
654+154
−102 km[7]
668+154
−86 km[8]
6.343572±0.000006 h[9]
0.127+0.04
−0.042[8]
IR (moderately red)[10]
B−V=0.88±0.02[11][12]
V−R=0.62±0.01[11]
V−I=1.24±0.01[11]
20.3 (opposition)[13][14]
3.760±0.035,[8]
3.6[1]

20000 Varuna[a] (provisional designation 2000 WR106) is a large trans-Neptunian object in the Kuiper belt. It was discovered in November 2000 by American astronomer Robert McMillan during a Spacewatch survey at the Kitt Peak National Observatory. It is named after the Hindu deity Varuna, one of the oldest deities mentioned in the Vedic texts.

Varuna's light curve is compatible with the body being a Jacobi ellipsoid, suggesting that it has an elongated shape due to its rapid rotation. Varuna's surface is moderately red in color due to the presence of complex organic compounds on its surface. Water ice is also present on its surface, and is thought to have been exposed by past collisions which may have also caused Varuna's rapid rotation. Although no natural satellites have been found or directly imaged around Varuna, analysis of variations in its light curve in 2019 suggests the presence of a possible satellite orbiting closely around Varuna.

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference jpldata was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference pronounced was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference MPEC2009-P26 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Buie was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Duchesne-Guillemin (1958) The Western response to Zoroaster
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference MPC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lellouch2019 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference TNOsCool9 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Valenzuela2019 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Mommert2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Belskaya2015 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference lcdb was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference Horizons was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference AstDys was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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