A high geometric albedo and small size of the Haumea cluster member (24835) 1995 SM55 from a stellar occultation and photometric observations

Abstract

Trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) are among the most ancient bodies of the solar system. Understanding their physical properties is key to constraining their origin and the evolution of the outer regions beyond Neptune. Stellar occultations provide highly accurate size and shape information. (24835) 1995 SM55 is one of the few members of the Haumea cluster and thus of particular interest. We aimed to determine its projected size, absolute magnitude, and geometric albedo, and to compare these with Haumea. A stellar occultation on 25 February 2024 was observed from five sites, with seven positive detections and 33 negative chords. An elliptical fit to the occultation chords yields semi-axes of $(104.3\pm 0.4)\times (83.5\pm 0.5)$ km, giving an area-equivalent diameter of $186.7\pm 1.8$ km, smaller than the 250 km upper limit from Herschel thermal data. Photometry provides an absolute magnitude $H_V=4.55\pm 0.03$, a phase slope of $0.04\pm 0.02$ mag/deg, and a $V-R=0.37\pm 0.05$. The rotational variability has an amplitude $\Delta m=0.05$ mag, but the period remains uncertain. Combining occultation and photometry, we derive a geometric albedo $p_V=0.80\pm 0.04$, one of the highest values measured for a TNO. This value is slightly higher than that of Haumea, consistent with the interpretation that 1995 SM55 belongs to the Haumea cluster.

arXiv comment14 pages, 7 figures, 4 tables, accepted for publication in A&A (in press)

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