Although the other dwarf planets are spherical, Haumea takes on more of an egg shape. Haumea and Pluto are very similar in size to one another, more so than any of the other dwarf planets. In , Haumea because the first object in the Kuiper belt that astronomers discovered rings! Haumea has a big red spot on its surface, which astronomers believe might have been the point where it collided with another planet or object.
Because Haumea rotates so quickly, it has one of the shortest day lengths amongst the planets. A full day on Haumea is equal to 3. Like the other dwarf planets in the Kuiper belt, Haumea is actually very cold. It's colder than degrees, which means that it's probably frozen on the outside! Almost two times the size of our Jupiter, WASPb is a sizzling gas giant whose temperature is approximately 4, degrees Fahrenheit 2, degrees Celsius.
Gravity causes enormous tidal forces which are stretching the planet into the shape of an egg. Mercury is the smallest and fastest planet in the solar system. It is also the closest planet to the sun. It is named after the Roman messenger god Mercury, the fastest Roman god. Saturn takes about Astronomers have discovered the first known dwarf planet to host a ring system. That egg, called Haumea, is now the first official dwarf planet found to host a ring system, and only the third body smaller than Neptune known to have rings.
Eris has a very small moon called Dysnomia. Dysnomia has a nearly circular orbit lasting about 16 days. This moon is named after Eris' daughter, the demon goddess of lawlessness. Dysnomia and other small moons around planets and dwarf planets allow astronomers to calculate the mass of the parent body. From an average distance of 4,,, miles 6,,, kilometers , Haumea is 43 astronomical units away from the Sun.
As Haumea orbits the Sun, it completes one rotation every 4 hours, making it one of the fastest rotating large objects in our solar system. It is possible that a large object impacted Haumea billions of years ago and set off Haumea's spin and created its moons.
Haumea has two known moons: Namaka is the inner moon, and Hi'iaka is the outer moon. Both are named for the mythological daughters of Haumea. Hi'iaka is the patron goddess of the island of Hawaii and of hula dancers. Namaka is a water spirit in Hawaiian mythology. Haumea is the first known Kuiper Belt Object to have rings. Scientists announced the discovery in after watching the dwarf planet pass in front of a star. Dwarf planet Haumea is a member of a group of objects that orbit in a disc-like zone beyond the orbit of Neptune called the Kuiper Belt.
This distant realm is populated with thousands of miniature icy worlds which formed early in the history of our solar system about 4. These icy, rocky bodies are called Kuiper Belt objects, transneptunian objects, or plutoids.
Introduction Originally designated EL61 and nicknamed Santa by one discovery team , Haumea is located in the Kuiper Belt , a donut-shaped region of icy bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune.
Haumea is 1, miles 2, kilometers across at its longest axis, but less than half as wide — miles km — at its shortest. Updated estimates of its mass and shape in showed that Haumea's density is likely similar to Pluto and that its shape may be too elongated to let it qualify as a dwarf planet after all.
The rapid spin allowed scientists to calculate its density, because different materials would stretch out differently. As a result, scientists think that Haumea is made up almost entirely of rock. Observations of Haumea, however, reveal a brightly gleaming surface. Scientists have concluded that, though most of Haumea's interior is rocky, it is covered by a thin icy shell. Haumea also appears to have a dark red spot on its surface that may contain more minerals and organic compounds than the ice around it.
In , astronomers also discovered a ring system around Haumea, which was discovered when it passed in front of the star URAT1 on Jan. The starlight also helped astronomers more accurately measure Haumea's longest axis, finding it to be roughly 17 percent larger than previous estimates.
The two moons of Haumea were discovered after observations at the W. Keck Observatory in Hawaii in They are far smaller than Haumea.
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