(458271) 2010 UM26 and 2010 RN221

(458271) 2010 UM26 and 2010 RN221
2010 UM26 and 2010 RN221 imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope on 4 January 2023
Discovery[1][2]
Discovered bySpacewatch (UM26)
Mt. Lemmon Survey (RN221)
Discovery siteKitt Peak Obs. (UM26)
Mt. Lemmon Obs. (RN221)
Discovery date10 November 2006 (UM26)
11 September 2010 (RN221)
Designations
(458271) 2010 UM26
2010 RN221
main-belt[3] · (middle)
Orbital characteristics[3][4]
Epoch 13 September 2023 (JD 2460200.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc17.15 yr (6,265 days)
Earliest precovery date14 May 2005
Aphelion3.415 AU
Perihelion1.738 AU
2.577 AU
Eccentricity0.3256
4.14 yr (1,511 days)
65.868° (UM26)
65.863° (RN221)
0° 14m 17.877s / day (UM26)
0° 14m 17.875s / day (RN221)
Inclination3.883°
234.869°
120.270°
Physical characteristics[5]: 3 
760 m (UM26)
350 m (RN221)
5.9±0.6 h (UM26)
≥20 h (RN221)
≈0.20 (assumed S-type)[5]: 3 
17.80 (UM26)[3]
19.24±0.36 (RN221)[4]

(458271) 2010 UM26 and 2010 RN221 are a pair of sub-kilometer-sized asteroids that have extremely similar orbits in the main asteroid belt. These two asteroids are thought to have dissociated from a binary system sometime in the 2000s, which would make them one of the youngest asteroid pairs known. The largest member of this pair, (458271) 2010 UM26 (or simply 2010 UM26), is about 760 m (2,490 ft) in diameter and was discovered on 10 November 2006 by the Spacewatch survey at Kitt Peak Observatory. The smaller member, 2010 RN221, is about 350 m (1,150 ft) in diameter and was discovered on 11 September 2010 by the Mount Lemmon Survey at Mount Lemmon Observatory. It was not until February 2022 that astronomers began to recognize the similar orbits of these asteroids.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference MPC-UM26 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference MPC-RN221 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference jpldata-UM26 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference jpldata-RN221 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Jewitt2023 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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