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2013 BL₇₆

The orbits of some of the most distant asteroids, 2013 BL76 at top left
Discovery
Discovered by	Mt. Lemmon Survey
Discovery date	January 20, 2013
Designations
Minor planet category	Trans-Neptunian object Centaur (DES) Damocloid
Orbital characteristics
Epoch 2017-Feb-16 (JD 2457800.5)
Uncertainty parameter 1
Observation arc	687 days (1.88 yr)
Aphelion	2254 ± 8 AU ~ 1920 AU
Perihelion	8.365 AU (1.2514 Tm) (q)
Semi-major axis	1131 ± 4 AU (a) ~ 964 AU
Eccentricity	0.99260 (e)
Orbital period (sidereal)	44,382 ±251 yr ~ 29900 yr last perihelion: 2012-10-27
Mean anomaly	0.04076° (M)
Mean motion	0.0000232226°/day (n)
Inclination	98.618° (i)
Longitude of ascending node	180.20° (Ω)
Argument of perihelion	165.99° (ω)
Earth MOID	7.3894 AU (1.10544 Tm)
Jupiter MOID	3.5120 AU (525.39 Gm)
Saturn MOID	0.98692 AU (147.641 Gm)
Physical characteristics
Dimensions	~ 15–40 km 30–40 km (assumed albedo 0.05-0.1)
Apparent magnitude	22.1
Absolute magnitude (H)	10.8

2013 BL₇₆ is a minor planet (centaur) from the scattered disk/Inner Oort cloud. Using an epoch of February 2017, it is the minor planet with the 5th largest heliocentric semi-major axis in the Solar system (larger ones include 2014 FE72, 2012 DR30, and 2005 VX3). 2013 BL₇₆ has a barycentric semi-major axis of ~964 AU, which is the third largest barycentric semi-major axis of any minor planet.

With an absolute magnitude (H) of 10.8 and an unknown albedo, the object has an estimated diameter of 15–40 km. Since it has not been seen out-gassing, it is not known if it is a comet or not. It might also be a damocloid, a type of minor planet that was originally a comet but lost most of its near-surface volatile materials after numerous orbits around the Sun. It also might be a dormant comet that simply has not been seen outgassing.

2013 BL₇₆ came to perihelion 8.3AU from the Sun on October 27, 2012, when it reached an apparent magnitude of about 20. In 1927, when it was 100AU from the Sun, it had an apparent magnitude of about 30.8. For comparison dwarf planet 90377 Sedna had an apparent magnitude of 21.7 when it was 100AU from the Sun. It comes to opposition at the start of September.

It will not be 50 AU from the Sun until 2045. After leaving the planetary region of the Solar System, 2013 BL₇₆ will have a barycentric aphelion of 1920 AU with an orbital period of 29900 years.

The orbit of 2013 BL₇₆ currently comes closer to Saturn than any of the other giant planets. In a 10 million year integration of the orbit, the nominal (best-fit) orbit acquires a perihelion point of 0.5AU (inside the orbit of Venus), and one of the 3-sigma clones acquires a perihelion point of only 0.008 AU (1,200,000 km; 740,000 mi).

2013 BL76 travels in a technically retrograde orbit around the Sun. It is actually orbiting in a plane nearly perpendicular to that of the ecliptic. It has the 55th highest inclination of any known asteroid, after 2010 GW147 and before 2014 HS150.

Comparison

Largest semimajor axes of minor planets

Notes

1. ^ Given the orbital eccentricity of this object, different epochs can generate quite different heliocentric unperturbed two-body best-fit solutions to the semi-major axis and orbital period. For objects at such high eccentricity, the Sun's Barycenter is more stable than a heliocentric solution. Using JPL Horizons, the barycentric semi-major axis is approximately 964 AU.
2. 0–3 is high-certainty and well constrained, 9 is low-certainty and probably lost.

References

1. ^ "2013 BL76". Seicchi Yoshida's Home Page. Retrieved 2013-07-12.
2. "MPEC 2013-C12 : 2013 BL76". IAU Minor Planet Center. 2013-02-03. Retrieved 2013-10-14. (K13B76L)
3. ^ Marc W. Buie. "Orbit Fit and Astrometric record for 13BL76". SwRI (Space Science Department). Archived from the original on 2016-02-06. Retrieved 2016-02-03. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
4. ^ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (2013 BL76)" (last observation: 2014-08-25; arc: 1.88 years). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Archived from the original on 2014-01-04. Retrieved 25 March 2016. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
5. ^ "2013 BL76". IAU minor planet center. Archived from the original on 2013-07-12. Retrieved 2013-07-12. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
6. ^ "Absolute Magnitude (H)". NASA/JPL. Retrieved 2013-10-13.
7. "AstDyS 2013BL76 Ephemerides". Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, Italy. Retrieved 2016-02-04.
8. "JPL Small-Body Database Search Engine: Asteroids and a > 100 (AU)". JPL Solar System Dynamics. Retrieved 2013-10-13. (Epoch defined at will change every 6 months or so)
9. ^ Horizons output. "Barycentric Osculating Orbital Elements for 2013 BL76". Retrieved 2014-03-06. (Solution using the Solar System Barycenter and barycentric coordinates. Select Ephemeris Type:Elements and Center:@0)
10. Kaib, Nathan A.; Becker, Andrew C.; Jones, R. Lynne; Puckett, Andrew W.; Bizyaev, Dmitry; Dilday, Benjamin; Frieman, Joshua A.; Oravetz, Daniel J.; Pan, Kaike; Quinn, Thomas; Schneider, Donald P.; Watters, Shannon (2009). "2006 SQ372: A Likely Long-Period Comet from the Inner Oort Cloud". The Astrophysical Journal. 695 (1): 268–275. arXiv:0901.1690. Bibcode:2009ApJ...695..268K. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/695/1/268.
11. "AstDys 2013BL76 Ephemerides for 1927 (when 100AU from Sun)". Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, Italy. Retrieved 2013-10-14.
12. "AstDys (90377) Sedna Ephemerides for 1975 (when 100AU from Sun)". Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, Italy. Retrieved 2013-10-14.

External links

• Webcite archive of Epoch 2015-06-27 with aphelion (Q) of 2467AU
• (709487) 2013 BL76 at the JPL Small-Body Database
  • Close approach · Discovery · Ephemeris · Orbit viewer · Orbit parameters · Physical parameters

• Astronomical objects discovered in 2013
• Centaurs (minor planets)
• Damocloids
• Inner Oort cloud
• Scattered disc and detached objects
• Extended Centaurs
• Unnumbered minor planets