Asteroids with Satellites Database--Johnston's Archive

(554099) 2012 KU50

compiled by Wm. Robert Johnston
last updated 7 December 2025

--Orbital and physical data--

(See this page for definitions of quantities; source codes in brackets, see this link for full references; *A, *D, and *E indicate assumed, derived, and estimated values, respectively.)

dynamical type, primary: TNO, 5:8 resonance


orbital data, primary (osculating elements) [JPL] :
semimajor axis a: 40.77187 AU
orbital period P: 260.3449 yr
(= 95091 d)
eccentricity e: 0.244171
perihelion distance q: 30.81658 AU
aphelion distance Q: 50.7272 AU
inclination i: 18.893699°
argument of perihelion ω: 126.0813°
ascending node Ω: 66.759423°
mean anomaly M: 29.4953°
perihelion passage TP: 2003 Jun 19.06
Epoch: 2024 Oct 17
data arc: 2002-2024 (297 obs.)
Earth MOID: 29.8537 AU
Jupiter Tisserand invariant TJ: 5.264
Neptune Tisserand invariant TN:2.874 [*D]


orbital data, secondary:
semimajor axis as: 20400 ± 800 km [G25c]
separation/primary radius as/rp:280 [*E]
separation/Hill radius as/rH:0.055 [*E]
orbital period Ps: 622 ± 3 d [G25c]
eccentricity es: 0.68 ± 0.04 [G25c]
normalized ang. mom. αL: ?

other data, system (combined):
absolute mag. H: 6.32 [MPC]
slope parameter G: (0.15) [*A]
effective diameter dE: 204 km [*E]
geometric albedo: (0.126 ) [*A]
color index U-B: ?
color index B-V: ?
taxonomic type: ?
mass m: 1.7x1018 ± 2x1017 kg [G25c]
density ρ: (1 g/cm3) [*A]
Hill radius rH: 370000 km [*E]

other data, primary:
diameter dp: 144 km [*E]
rotation period RPp: ?
amplitude in mag., rotational ΔM: ?
pole direction Β, λ: ? , ?


other data, secondary:
diameter ds: 144 km [*E]
diameter ratio ds/dp: 1.0 [*D]
component mag. difference ΔM: 0.0 [G22b]
rotation period RPs: ?

-- (554099) 2012 KU50 --discovery and notes:

Primary discovered 2012 May 18 from La Silla, Chile by ?. Linked to prediscovery observations from 2002 Mar 12. Permanent number assigned 2021 Jun 01.

Companion discovered 2014 Apr 23 by C. O. Chandler, C. A. Trujillo, W. M. Grundy, and J. K. Kueny using imaging observations from Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, La Serena, Chile. Announced 2021 Nov 27 [C21a].

--Links, more technical:

--Links, less technical:

--Links to ADS abstracts:


© 2021, 2025 by Wm. Robert Johnston.
Last modified 7 December 2025.
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