Chad Trujillo | |
---|---|
Born | November 22, 1973 |
Nationality | American |
Education | Massachusetts Institute of Technology University of Hawaiʻi |
Known for | Discovery of Eris, Sedna and other trans-Neptunian objects |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Planetary astronomy |
Institutions | Gemini Observatory Northern Arizona University |
Chadwick A. Trujillo (born November 22, 1973) is an American astronomer, discoverer of minor planets and the co-discoverer of Eris, the most massive dwarf planet known in the Solar System.[1][2]
Trujillo works with computer software and has examined the orbits of the numerous trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs), which is the outer area of the Solar System that he specialized in. In late August 2005, it was announced that Trujillo, along with Michael Brown and David Rabinowitz, had discovered Eris in 2003.[2] As a result of the discovery of the satellite Dysnomia, Eris was the first TNO known to be more massive than Pluto.[3]