Kuiper Belt

2015 (MMXV) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. It corresponds to the years 5775/5776 in the Hebrew calendar. 2015 - Events. 2015 - March. 20th - Total solar eclipse (visible in the North Atlantic). 2015 - May. 7th - election to Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly. 2015 - September. 13th - Partial solar eclipse < ...

Including:

• 2015 - Events
• 2015 - March
• 2015 - May
• 2015 - September
• 2015 - December
• 2015 - Predicted events unknown dates
• 2015 - Fictional references to the year

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See also. Lists of astronomical objects Category: Astronomical objects ...

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The solar system comprises our Sun and the retinue of celestial objects gravitationally bound to it. Traditionally, this is said to consist of the Sun, nine planets and their 158 currently known moons; however, a large number of other objects, including asteroids, meteoroids, planetoids, comets, and interplanetary dust, orbit the Sun as well. Although the term "solar system" is frequently applied to other star systems and the planetary systems which may comprise them, it should strictly refer to our system specifically: the wor ...

Including:

• Solar system - Structure and layout of the solar system
• Solar system - Origin and age of the solar system
• Solar system - Regions of the solar system
• Solar system - Interplanetary medium
• Solar system - The inner planets
• Solar system - The asteroid belt
• Solar system - The outer planets
• Solar system - The trans-Neptunian region
• Solar system - And beyond
• Solar system - Galactic orbit of the solar system
• Solar system - Planetary system formation
• Solar system - Discovery of the solar system
• Solar system - Exploration of the solar system
• Solar system - Attributes of major planets
• Solar system - Attributes of the largest minor planets
• Solar system - Other facts

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(15760) 1992 QB1 (also written (15760) 1992 QB1) was the first trans-Neptunian object to be discovered after Pluto and Charon. It was discovered in 1992 and is now classified as a cubewano, an object in the main Kuiper Belt. The term cubewano derives from "Q B one". (15760) 1992 QB1 was discovered by David C. Jewitt and Jane X. Luu at the Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawaii. The discoverers suggested the name "Smiley" for the object [1], but as there is already an asteroid named 1613 Smiley (named ...

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A planet is generally considered to be a relatively large mass of accreted matter in orbit around a star that is not a star itself. The name comes from the Greek term πλανήτης, planētēs, meaning "wanderer", as ancient astronomers noted how certain lights moved across the sky in relation to the other stars. Based on historical consensus, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) lists nine planets in our solar system. Since the term "planet" has no precise scientific definition, however, many astronomers contest that ...

Including:

• Planet - Planetary formation
• Planet - Within our solar system
• Planet - Accepted planets
• Planet - Other candidates
• Planet - Extrasolar planets
• Planet - Brown dwarf planets
• Planet - Interstellar planets
• Planet - Definition and classification of planets
• Planet - Suggested wide definitions
• Planet - Suggested narrow definitions
• Planet - Further classification

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The centaurs are a class of icy planetoids that orbit the Sun between Jupiter and Neptune, named after the mythical race of centaurs. The first centaur to be discovered, 2060 Chiron was found to display a coma upon its approach to perihelion, and is now officially classified as both a comet (95/P Chiron) and an asteroid, although it is far larger than a typical comet and there is some lingering controversy. Other centaurs are being monitored for comet-like activity. Centaurs are not in stable orbits and will eventually b ...

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Some of the moons of the outer planets of the solar system are large enough to be suitable places for colonization. Many of the larger moons contain water ice, liquid water, and organic compounds that might be useful for rocket fuel production among other things. Colonies in the outer solar system could also serve as centres for long term investigation of the planet and the other moons. In particular, robotic devices could be controlled by humans without the very long time delays needed to communicate with Earth. There have also been proposa ...

Including:

• Colonization of the outer solar system - Asteroids
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Ceres
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Jupiter
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Europa
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Ganymede
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Callisto
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Saturn
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Titan
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Uranus
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Neptune
• Colonization of the outer solar system - Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud

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20000 Varuna ("VAR oo na") is a Kuiper Belt object about 1060 km in diameter, estimated from a combination of thermal and optical measurements. Little is known about it. It has a rotational period of approximately 3.17 hours (or 6.34 hours, depending on whether the light curve is single or double-peaked). It has a density of approximately 1 g/cm⁹ (as dense as water), which implies that it may not be a fully solid body (Jewitt & Sheppard, 2002). The surface is darker than the surface of Pluto indicating it is l ...

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90482 Orcus (originally known by the provisional designation 2004 DW) is a Kuiper Belt object (KBO) that was discovered by Michael Brown of Caltech, Chad Trujillo of the Gemini Observatory, and David Rabinowitz of Yale University. The discovery images of this object were acquired on February 17, 2004. Precovery images as early as November 8, 1951 were later identified. 90482 Orcus - Size and magnitude. The apparent magnitude of the object is 18.5, which is the same brightness as 50000 Quaoar. ...

Including:

• 90482 Orcus - Size and magnitude
• 90482 Orcus - Name

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Arno Arthur Wachmann Comet Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 (formal designation 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann) was discovered on 15 November 1925 by Arnold Schwassmann and Arno Arthur Wachmann at the Hamburg Observatory in Bergedorf, Germany. The comet was discovered on photographically, when the comet was in outburst and the magnitude was about 13. Precovery images of the comet from March 4, 1 ...

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At the end of the 19th century, many astronomers speculated about the existence of a planet beyond Neptune. The discovery of Neptune resulted from calculations of the mathematicians Adams and Le Verrier to explain discrepancies between the calculated and observed orbits of Uranus, Saturn, and Jupiter. After the discovery of Neptune, however, there still were some slight discrepancies in those orbits, and also in the orbit of Neptune. These were taken to indicate the ex ...

See also:

Planet X, Planet X - Origin of the discrepancy, Planet X - Discovery of Pluto, Planet X - Further searches for Planets X, Planet X - Planet X disproved, Planet X - Beyond the Kuiper Belt, Planet X - Planet X in fiction

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The main contents of the outer solar system are probably very numerous small bodies akin to comets from one or another population, and the place where the Solar Wind meets the Interstellar Medium. Of the bodies that orbit the Sun, major constituents include the Kuiper Belt, or scattered disk objects, trans-Neptunian objects(aka TNO's), and, the unconfirmed Oort Cloud. Work by Michael E. Brown's team has brought many recent discoveries in this area. From whichever population source, Comets frequently originate within the area, their po ...

See also:

Outer solar system, Outer solar system - Contents and Structure, Outer solar system - Influence and Evolution, Outer solar system - Scale

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Following Wolf's lead these asteroids were given names associated with the Iliad — in fact, those in the L4 point are named after Greek heroes of the Iliad (the "Greek node" or "Achilles group"), and those at the L5 point are named after the heroes of Troy (the "Trojan node"). Confusingly, the latter group are sometimes called Patroclean asteroids after the most prominent of those, even though Patroclus (the hero) was on the Greek side. However, 617 Patroclus (the asteroid) was the first discovered aster ...

See also:

Trojan asteroid, Trojan asteroid - History, Trojan asteroid - Nomenclature, Trojan asteroid - External link

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Much like "continent", "planet" is a word without a precise definition, with history and culture playing as much of a role as geology and astrophysics. Recent definitions have been vague and imprecise; The American Heritage Dictionary, for instance, formerly defined a planet as: A nonluminous celestial body larger than an asteroid or comet, illuminated by light from a star, such as the Sun, around which it revolves. In the solar system there are nine known planets: Mercury, Venus, Ea ...

See also:

Planet, Planet - Planetary formation, Planet - Within our solar system, Planet - Accepted planets, Planet - Other candidates, Planet - Extrasolar planets, Planet - Brown dwarf planets, Planet - Interstellar planets, Planet - Definition and classification of planets, Planet - Suggested wide definitions, Planet - Suggested narrow definitions, Planet - Further classification

Read more here: » Planet: Encyclopedia II - Planet - Definition and classification of planets

An understanding of planetary habitability begins with stars, not planets themselves. While bodies that are generally Earth-like may be plentiful, it is just as important that their larger system be agreeable to life. Under the auspices of SETI's Project Phoenix, scientists Margaret Turnbull and Jill Tarter developed the "HabCat" (or Catalogue of Habitable Stellar Systems) in 2002. The catalogue was formed by winnowing the nearly 120,000 stars of the larger Hipparcos Catalogue into a core group of 17,000 "HabStars," and the selection criteri ...

See also:

Planetary habitability, Planetary habitability - Suitable star systems, Planetary habitability - Spectral class, Planetary habitability - A stable habitable zone, Planetary habitability - Low stellar variation, Planetary habitability - High metallicity, Planetary habitability - Binary systems, Planetary habitability - Planetary characteristics, Planetary habitability - Mass, Planetary habitability - Orbit and rotation, Planetary habitability - Geochemistry, Planetary habitability - Other considerations, Planetary habitability - The habitability of red dwarf planetary systems, Planetary habitability - Good Jupiters, Planetary habitability - The Galactic neighborhood, Planetary habitability - Notes

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SpaceShipOne is registered with the FAA as N328KF. 'N' is the prefix for US-registered aircraft; '328KF' was chosen by Scaled Composites to stand for 328000 (k{ilo}) feet (about 100 kilometers, the officially designated edge of space). The original choice of registry number, N100KM, was already taken. N328KF is registered as a glider, reflecting the fact that most of its independent flight is unpowered. All of its flights have ...

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Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - History, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - Astronauts, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - Flights, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - Specifications SpaceShipOne, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - General characteristics, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - Performance, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - Related content, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - Watching SpaceShipOne fly, Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne - Trivia

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While there is much disagreement between current definitions of "planet", most focus on three general criteria: that it must orbit a star, be above a certain size (usually large enough to be rounded by its own gravity), and yet not be large enough to commence nuclear fusion. Each of these criteria has been challenged by various discoveries, outlined below. Definition of planet - Minor planets. Within our planetary system, the nine objects currently accepted as planets orbit the Sun wit ...

See also:

Definition of planet, Definition of planet - History and etymology, Definition of planet - Issues and controversies, Definition of planet - Minor planets, Definition of planet - Double planets, Definition of planet - Rogue planets or sub-stars, Definition of planet - History vs. science

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See List of eponyms (L-Z) An asterisk designates people who became eponyms despite their stated wishes not to. ...

See also:

List of eponyms, List of eponyms - A, List of eponyms - B, List of eponyms - C, List of eponyms - D, List of eponyms - E, List of eponyms - F, List of eponyms - G, List of eponyms - H, List of eponyms - I - J, List of eponyms - K, List of eponyms - L - Z

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Colonization of the outer solar system - Europa. The Artemis Project designed a plan to colonize Europa. Scientists were to inhabit igloos and drill down into the Europan ice crust, exploring any sub-surface ocean. It also discusses use of "air pockets" for human inhabitation. This Europa surface base would also make use of inflatable structures. Exploration of Europa and its subglacial ocean would be carried out with submarines. There are some difficulties related to colonization of Europa; one significan ...

See also:

Colonization of the outer solar system, Colonization of the outer solar system - Asteroids, Colonization of the outer solar system - Ceres, Colonization of the outer solar system - Jupiter, Colonization of the outer solar system - Europa, Colonization of the outer solar system - Ganymede, Colonization of the outer solar system - Callisto, Colonization of the outer solar system - Saturn, Colonization of the outer solar system - Titan, Colonization of the outer solar system - Uranus, Colonization of the outer solar system - Neptune, Colonization of the outer solar system - Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud

Read more here: » Colonization of the outer solar system: Encyclopedia II - Colonization of the outer solar system - Jupiter

According to their location, the objects in the solar system are divided into three zones: Zone I or the inner solar system, including terrestrial planets and the Main belt of asteroids; Zone II, including the giant planets, their satellites and the centaurs, and Zone III, or the outer solar system, comprising the area of the Trans-Neptunian objects including the Kuiper Belt, the Oort cloud, and the vast region in between.

See also:

Solar system, Solar system - Structure and layout of the solar system, Solar system - Origin and age of the solar system, Solar system - Regions of the solar system, Solar system - Interplanetary medium, Solar system - The inner planets, Solar system - The asteroid belt, Solar system - The outer planets, Solar system - The trans-Neptunian region, Solar system - And beyond, Solar system - Galactic orbit of the solar system, Solar system - Planetary system formation, Solar system - Discovery of the solar system, Solar system - Exploration of the solar system, Solar system - Attributes of major planets, Solar system - Attributes of the largest minor planets, Solar system - Other facts

Read more here: » Solar system: Encyclopedia II - Solar system - Regions of the solar system