Trans-Neptunian binaries (2018)

Abstract

The discovery and characteristics of transneptunian binaries are reviewed. In the 20 years since their first discovery, a wealth of detail has emerged including the frequency of binaries in different populations, their relative sizes and separations, and colors. Taken globally, these properties give strong clues to the origin and evolution of the populations where these binaries are found. In the last ten years and increasing number of binary orbits have been determined which yields a new trove of information on their masses and densities as well as details of their orbits including inclination, eccentricity and the timing of mutual events. In 2018, the study of transneptunian binaries remains one of the most active areas of progress in understanding the Solar System beyond Neptune.

22 pages, 9 figures, 1 table

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Cited by in corpus (17)

• The solar nebula origin of (486958) Arrokoth, a primordial contact binary in the Kuiper belt
• The Geology and Geophysics of Kuiper Belt Object (486958) Arrokoth
• A multi-chord stellar occultation by the large trans-Neptunian object (174567) Varda
• A Statistical Review of Light Curves and the Prevalence of Contact Binaries in the Kuiper Belt
• Origin and Evolution of Jupiter's Trojan Asteroids
• Dynamical Implantation of Blue Binaries in the Cold Classical Kuiper Belt
• The visible and thermal light curve of the large Kuiper belt object (50000) Quaoar
• Close TNO Passages as a Driver of the Origin and Evolution of Ultra-Wide Kuiper Belt Binaries
• From Planetesimals to Dwarf Planets by Pebble Accretion
• A pair of Jovian Trojans at the L4 Lagrange point
• Low rock mass fraction within trans-Neptunian objects inferred from the spin-orbit evolution of Orcus-Vanth and Salacia-Actaea
• JWST Spectroscopy of a Blue Binary Cold Classical Kuiper Belt Object
• Occultation constraints on solar system formation models
• The Luminosity Function of Ultra-Faint Trans-Neptunian Objects Detected by JWST
• Considering contact forces during the formation of planetesimals by gravitational collapse: mutual orbits, spin states, and shapes
• Size and shape of the trans-Neptunian object (470316) 2007 OC10: Comparison with thermal data
• The Surfaces of Small to Mid-Size Plutinos: Evidence of an Association Between Inclination and Surface Type