[meteorite-list] PLANET 2003 UB313 News, or WHOOPS!

From: Sterling K. Webb <kelly_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri Aug 12 20:55:23 2005
Message-ID: <42FD44DA.BD32B90F_at_bhil.com>

Hi, Planet Fans,

    I quote a bulleting received from
Sky & Telescope magazine concerning
the SIZE of 2003 UB313, a crucial issue
in determining whether it is a PLANET
or just a numbered object, blah, blah:

<http://SkyandTelescope.com/news/article_1567_1.asp>
    "Due to a Spitzer Space Telescope
pointing error, the infrared observatory
didn't actually observe 2003 UB313 as
had been previously reported. Astronomers
had used the "nondetection" to establish
an upper size limit on the largest known
Kuiper Belt object. If Spitzer sees the
body in follow-up observations scheduled
for late August, it could mean that 2003
UB313 is much larger than the original
limit of around 3,400 kilometers
(2,100 miles). Hubble Space Telescope
observations are also in the works."

    How big did you say?


Sterling K. Webb
Received on Fri 12 Aug 2005 08:54:50 PM PDT