Dynamical Classification of Trans-Neptunian Objects Detected by the Dark Energy Survey
- Department of Physics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (United States)
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (United States)
- Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, National Optical Astronomy Observatory, Casilla 603, La Serena (Chile)
- Instituto de Fisica Teorica UAM/CSIC, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, E-28049 Madrid (Spain)
- CNRS, UMR 7095, Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris, F-75014, Paris (France)
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT (United Kingdom)
- Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, P.O. Box 500, Batavia, IL 60510 (United States)
- Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics & Cosmology, P.O. Box 2450, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305 (United States)
- Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas (CIEMAT), Madrid (Spain)
The outer solar system contains a large number of small bodies (known as trans-Neptunian objects or TNOs) that exhibit diverse types of dynamical behavior. The classification of bodies in this distant region into dynamical classes—subpopulations that experience similar orbital evolution—aids in our understanding of the structure and formation of the solar system. In this work, we propose an updated dynamical classification scheme for the outer solar system. This approach includes the construction of a new (automated) method for identifying mean motion resonances. We apply this algorithm to the current data set of TNOs observed by the Dark Energy Survey (DES) and present a working classification for all of the DES TNOs detected to date. Our classification scheme yields 1 inner centaur, 19 outer centaurs, 21 scattering disk objects, 47 detached TNOs, 48 securely resonant objects, 7 resonant candidates, and 97 classical belt objects. Among the scattering and detached objects, we detect 8 TNOs with semimajor axes greater than 150 au.
- OSTI ID:
- 23013145
- Journal Information:
- The Astronomical Journal (Online), Vol. 159, Issue 4; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1538-3881
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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