Related papers: Surface Dynamics, Equilibrium Points and Individua…

Photometry of Kuiper Belt Object (486958) Arrokoth from New Horizons LORRI

On January 1st 2019, the New Horizons spacecraft flew by the classical Kuiper belt object (486958) Arrokoth (provisionally designated 2014 MU69), possibly the most primitive object ever explored by a spacecraft. The I/F of Arrokoth is…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-03-04 Jason D. Hofgartner , Bonnie J. Buratti , Susan D. Benecchi , Ross A. Beyer , Andrew Cheng , James T. Keane , Tod R. Lauer , Catherine B. Olkin , Joel W. Parker , Kelsi N. Singer , John R. Spencer , S. Alan Stern , Anne J. Verbiscer , Harold A. Weaver , New Horizons Geology , Geophysics Team , New Horizons LORRI Team

The fate of particles in the dynamical environment around Kuiper Belt object (486958) Arrokoth

The contact binary Kuiper Belt object (486958) Arrokoth, targeted by New Horizons mission, has a unique slope pattern, which is a result of its irregular bilobate surface shape and high spin period. Thus, some peculiar topographic regions…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2022-04-13 Andre Amarante , Othon Winter

The Geology and Geophysics of Kuiper Belt Object (486958) Arrokoth

The Cold Classical Kuiper Belt, a class of small bodies in undisturbed orbits beyond Neptune, are primitive objects preserving information about Solar System formation. The New Horizons spacecraft flew past one of these objects, the 36 km…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-04-03 J. R. Spencer , S. A. Stern , J. M. Moore , H. A. Weaver , K. N. Singer , C. B. Olkin , A. J. Verbiscer , W. B. McKinnon , J. Wm. Parker , R. A. Beyer , J. T. Keane , T. R. Lauer , S. B. Porter , O. L. White , B. J. Buratti , M. R. El-Maarry , C. M. Lisse , A. H. Parker , H. B. Throop , S. J. Robbins , O. M. Umurhan , R. P. Binzel , D. T. Britt , M. W. Buie , A. F. Cheng , D. P. Cruikshank , H. A. Elliott , G. R. Gladstone , W. M. Grundy , M. E. Hill , M. Horanyi , D. E. Jennings , J. J. Kavelaars , I. R. Linscott , D. J. McComas , R. L. McNutt , S. Protopapa , D. C. Reuter , P. M. Schenk , M. R. Showalter , L. A. Young , A. M. Zangari , A. Y. Abedin , C. B. Beddingfield , S. D. Benecchi , E. Bernardoni , C. J. Bierson , D. Borncamp , V. J. Bray , A. L. Chaikin , R. D. Dhingra , C. Fuentes , T. Fuse , P. L Gay , S. D. J. Gwyn , D. P. Hamilton , J. D. Hofgartner , M. J. Holman , A. D. Howard , C. J. A. Howett , H. Karoji , D. E. Kaufmann , M. Kinczyk , B. H. May , M. Mountain , M. Pätzold , J. M. Petit , M. R. Piquette , I. N. Reid , H. J. Reitsema , K. D. Runyon , S. S. Sheppard , J. A. Stansberry , T. Stryk , P. Tanga , D. J. Tholen , D. E. Trilling , L. H. Wasserman

Sublimation as an effective mechanism for flattened lobes of (486958) Arrokoth

The New Horizons spacecraft's flyby of Kuiper Belt Object (KBO) (486958) Arrokoth revealed a bilobed shape with highly flattened lobes both aligned to its equatorial plane, and a rotational axis almost aligned to the orbital plane…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-10-14 Yuhui Zhao , Ladislav Rezac , Yuri Skorov , Shoucun Hu , Nalin H Samarasinha , Jian-Yang. Li

Challenge in Arrokoth's single merger to achieve the shape's principal axis configuration

The cold-classical Kuiper Belt Object 486958 Arrokoth is a contact binary composed of two flattened lobes, Weeyo and Wenu, closely aligned along their principal axes, despite each lobe having a highly irregular shape. The object's smooth…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2026-04-20 Ketan Kamat , Ryota Nakano , Masatoshi Hirabayashi

The Shape of (486958) Arrokoth

Here we present an updated shape model of (486958) Arrokoth, the bilobate Kuiper Belt Object (KBO) which the NASA New Horizons spacecraft flew past in 2019. This updated shape model uses all of the resolved images of Arrokoth obtained by…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2026-05-29 Simon B. Porter , Kelsi N. Singer , Paul M. Schenk , Anne J. Verbiscer , Susan D. Benecchi , John R. Spencer , Joel Wm. Parker , Pontus Brandt , S. Alan Stern

Constraining the final merger of contact binary(486958) Arrokoth with soft-sphere discrete element simulations

The New Horizons mission has returned stunning images of the bilobate Kuiper belt object (486958) Arrokoth. It is a contact binary, formed from two intact and relatively undisturbed predecessor objects joined by a narrow contact region. We…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2021-01-20 J. C. Marohnic , D. C. Richardson , W. B. McKinnon , H. F. Agrusa , J. V. DeMartini , A. F. Cheng , S. A. Stern , C. B. Olkin , H. A. Weaver , J. R. Spencer , the New Horizons Science team

The solar nebula origin of (486958) Arrokoth, a primordial contact binary in the Kuiper belt

The New Horizons spacecraft's encounter with the cold classical Kuiper belt object (486958) Arrokoth (formerly 2014 MU69) revealed a contact-binary planetesimal. We investigate how it formed, finding it is the product of a gentle, low-speed…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-03-13 W. B. McKinnon , D. C. Richardson , J. C. Marohnic , J. T. Keane , W. M. Grundy , D. P. Hamilton , D. Nesvorny , O. M. Umurhan , T. R. Lauer , K. N. Singer , S. A. Stern , H. A. Weaver , J. R. Spencer , M. W. Buie , J. M. Moore , J. J. Kavelaars , C. M. Lisse , X. Mao , A. H. Parker , S. B. Porter , M. R. Showalter , C. B. Olkin , D. P. Cruikshank , H. A. Elliott , G. R. Gladstone , J. W. Parker , A. J. Verbiscer , L. A. Young , the New Horizons Science Team

Some New Results and Perspectives Regarding the Kuiper Belt Object Arrokoth's Remarkable, Bright Neck

One of the most striking and curious features of the small Kuiper Belt Object (KB), Arrokoth, explored by New Horizons, is the bright, annular neck it exhibits at the junction between its two lobes. Here we summarize past reported findings…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2021-03-22 S. Alan Stern , Brian Keeney , Kelsi Singer , Oliver White , Jason D. Hofgartner , Will Grundy , The New Horizons Team

Initial results from the New Horizons exploration of 2014 MU69, a small Kuiper Belt Object

The Kuiper Belt is a distant region of the Solar System. On 1 January 2019, the New Horizons spacecraft flew close to (486958) 2014 MU69, a Cold Classical Kuiper Belt Object, a class of objects that have never been heated by the Sun and are…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-04-03 S. A. Stern , H. A. Weaver , J. R. Spencer , C. B. Olkin , G. R. Gladstone , W. M. Grundy , J. M. Moore , D. P. Cruikshank , H. A. Elliott , W. B. McKinnon , J. Wm. Parker , A. J. Verbiscer , L. A. Young , D. A. Aguilar , J. M. Albers , T. Andert , J. P. Andrews , F. Bagenal , M. E. Banks , B. A. Bauer , J. A. Bauman , K. E. Bechtold , C. B. Beddingfield , N. Behrooz , K. B. Beisser , S. D. Benecchi , E. Bernardoni , R. A. Beyer , S. Bhaskaran , C. J. Bierson , R. P. Binzel , E. M. Birath , M. K. Bird , D. R. Boone , A. F. Bowman , V. J. Bray , D. T. Britt , L. E. Brown , M. R. Buckley , M. W. Buie , B. J. Buratti , L. M. Burke , S. S. Bushman , B. Carcich , A. L. Chaikin , C. L. Chavez , A. F. Cheng , E. J. Colwell , S. J. Conard , M. P. Conner , C. A. Conrad , J. C. Cook , S. B. Cooper , O. S. Custodio , C. M. Dalle Ore , C. C. Deboy , P. Dharmavaram , R. D. Dhingra , G. F. Dunn , A. M. Earle , A. F. Egan , J. Eisig , M. R. El-Maarry , C. Engelbrecht , B. L. Enke , C. J. Ercol , E. D. Fattig , C. L. Ferrell , T. J. Finley , J. Firer , J. Fischetti , W. M. Folkner , M. N. Fosbury , G. H. Fountain , J. M. Freeze , L. Gabasova , L. S. Glaze , J. L. Green , G. A. Griffith , Y. Guo , M. Hahn , D. W. Hals , D. P. Hamilton , S. A. Hamilton , J. J. Hanley , A. Harch , K. A. Harmon , H. M. Hart , J. Hayes , C. B. Hersman , M. E. Hill , T. A. Hill , J. D. Hofgartner , M. E. Holdridge , M. Horányi , A. Hosadurga , A. D. Howard , C. J. A. Howett , S. E. Jaskulek , D. E. Jennings , J. R. Jensen , M. R. Jones , H. K. Kang , D. J. Katz , D. E. Kaufmann , J. J. Kavelaars , J. T. Keane , G. P. Keleher , M. Kinczyk , M. C. Kochte , P. Kollmann , S. M. Krimigis , G. L. Kruizinga , D. Y. Kusnierkiewicz , M. S. Lahr , T. R. Lauer , G. B. Lawrence , J. E. Lee , E. J. Lessac-Chenen , I. R. Linscott , C. M. Lisse , A. W. Lunsford , D. M. Mages , V. A. Mallder , N. P. Martin , B. H. May , D. J. McComas , R. L. McNutt , Jr. D. S. Mehoke , T. S. Mehoke , D. S. Nelson , H. D. Nguyen , J. I. Núñez , A. C. Ocampo , W. M. Owen , G. K. Oxton , A. H. Parker , M. Pätzold , J. Y. Pelgrift , F. J. Pelletier , J. P. Pineau , M. R. Piquette , S. B. Porter , S. Protopapa , E. Quirico , J. A. Redfern , A. L. Regiec , H. J. Reitsema , D. C. Reuter , D. C. Richardson , J. E. Riedel , M. A. Ritterbush , S. J. Robbins , D. J. Rodgers , G. D. Rogers , D. M. Rose , P. E. Rosendall , K. D. Runyon , M. G. Ryschkewitsch , M. M. Saina , M. J. Salinas , P. M. Schenk , J. R. Scherrer , W. R. Schlei , B. Schmitt , D. J. Schultz , D. C. Schurr , F. Scipioni , R. L. Sepan , R. G. Shelton , M. R. Showalter , M. Simon , K. N. Singer , E. W. Stahlheber , D. R. Stanbridge , J. A. Stansberry , A. J. Steffl , D. F. Strobel , M. M. Stothoff , T. Stryk , J. R. Stuart , M. E. Summers , M. B. Tapley , A. Taylor , H. W. Taylor , R. M. Tedford , H. B. Throop , L. S. Turner , O. M. Umurhan , J. Van Eck , D. Velez , M. H. Versteeg , M. A. Vincent , R. W. Webbert , S. E. Weidner , G. E. Weigle , J. R. Wendel , O. L. White , K. E. Whittenburg , B. G. Williams , K. E. Williams , S. P. Williams , H. L. Winters , A. M. Zangari , T. H. Zurbuchen

Color, Composition, and Thermal Environment of Kuiper Belt Object (486958) Arrokoth

The outer Solar System object (486958) Arrokoth (provisional designation 2014 MU$_{69}$) has been largely undisturbed since its formation. We study its surface composition using data collected by the New Horizons spacecraft. Methanol ice is…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-02-18 W. M. Grundy , M. K. Bird , D. T. Britt , J. C. Cook , D. P. Cruikshank , C. J. A. Howett , S. Krijt , I. R. Linscott , C. B. Olkin , A. H. Parker , S. Protopapa , M. Ruaud , O. M. Umurhan , L. A. Young , C. M. Dalle Ore , J. J. Kavelaars , J. T. Keane , Y. J. Pendleton , S. B. Porter , F. Scipioni , J. R. Spencer , S. A. Stern , A. J. Verbiscer , H. A. Weaver , R. P. Binzel , M. W. Buie , B. J. Buratti , A. Cheng , A. M. Earle , H. A. Elliott , L. Gabasova , G. R. Gladstone , M. E. Hill , M. Horanyi , D. E. Jennings , A. W. Lunsford , D. J. McComas , W. B. McKinnon , R. L. McNutt , J. M. Moore , J. W. Parker , E. Quirico , D. C. Reuter , P. M. Schenk , B. Schmitt , M. R. Showalter , K. N. Singer , G. E. Weigle , A. M. Zangari

The Sublimative Evolution of (486958) Arrokoth

We consider the history of New Horizons target (486958) Arrokoth in the context of its sublimative evolution. Shortly after the Sun's protoplanetary disk (PPD) cleared, the newly intense sunlight sparked a sublimative period in Arrokoth's…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2021-01-20 Jordan K. Steckloff , Carey M. Lisse , Taylor K. Safrit , Amanda S. Bosh , Wladimir Lyra , Gal Sarid

Size and Shape Constraints of (486958) Arrokoth from Stellar Occultations

We present the results from four stellar occultations by (486958) Arrokoth, the flyby target of the New Horizons extended mission. Three of the four efforts led to positive detections of the body, and all constrained the presence of rings…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-04-08 Marc W. Buie , Simon B. Porter , Peter Tamblyn , Dirk Terrell , Alex Harrison Parker , David Baratoux , Maram Kaire , Rodrigo Leiva , Anne J. Verbiscer , Amanda M. Zangari , François Colas , Baïdy Demba Diop , Joseph I. Samaniego , Lawrence H. Wasserman , Susan D. Benecchi , Amir Caspi , Stephen Gwyn , J. J. Kavelaars , Adriana C. Ocampo Uría , Jorge Rabassa , M. F. Skrutskie , Alejandro Soto , Paolo Tanga , Eliot F. Young , S. Alan Stern , Bridget C. Andersen , Mauricio E. Arango Pérez , Anicia Arredondo , Rodolfo Alfredo Artola , Abdoulaye Bâ , Romuald Ballet , Ted Blank , Cheikh Tidiane Bop , Amanda S. Bosh , Matías Aarón Camino López , Christian M. Carter , J. H. Castro-Chacón , Alfonso Caycedo Desprez , Nicolás Caycedo Guerra , Steven J. Conard , Jean-Luc Dauvergne , Bryan Dean , Michelle Dean , Josselin Desmars , Abdou Lahat Dieng , Mame Diarra Bousso Dieng , Omar Diouf , Gualbert Séraphin Dorego , David W. Dunham , Joan Dunham , Hugo A. Durantini Luca , Patrick Edwards , Nicolas Erasmus , Gayane Faye , Mactar Faye , Lucas Ezequiel Ferrario , Chelsea L. Ferrell , Tiffany J. Finley , Wesley C. Fraser , Alison J. Friedli , Julián Galvez Serna , Esteban A. Garcia-Migani , Anja Genade , Kai Getrost , Ricardo A. Gil-Hutton , German N. Gimeno , Eli Joseph Golub , Giovanni Francisco González Murillo , Michael D. Grusin , Sebastian Gurovich , William H. Hanna , Santiago M. Henn , P. C. Hinton , Paul J. Hughes , John David Josephs , Raul Joya , Joshua A. Kammer , Brian A. Keeney , John M. Keller , Emily A. Kramer , Stephen E. Levine , Carey M. Lisse , Amy J. Lovell , Jason A. Mackie , Stanislav Makarchuk , Luis E. Manzano , Salma Sylla Mbaye , Modou Mbaye , Raul Roberto Melia , Freddy Moreno , Sean K. Moss , Diene Ndaiye , Mapathe Ndiaye , Matthew J. Nelson , Catherine B. Olkin , Aart M. Olsen , Victor Jonathan Ospina Moreno , Jay M. Pasachoff , Mariana Belen Pereyra , Michael J. Person , Giovanni Pinzón , Eduardo Alejandro Pulver , Edwin A. Quintero , Jeffrey R. Regester , Aaron Caleb Resnick , Mauricio Reyes-Ruiz , Alex D. Rolfsmeier , Trina R. Ruhland , Julien Salmon , Pablo Santos-Sanz , Marcos Ariel Santucho , Diana Karina Sepúlveda Niño , Amanda A. Sickafoose , José S. Silva , Kelsi N. Singer , Joy N. Skipper , Stephen M. Slivan , Rose J. C. Smith , Julio C. Spagnotto , Andrew W. Stephens , Samuel D. Strabala , Francisco J. Tamayo , Henry B. Throop , Andrés David Torres Cañas , Labaly Toure , Alassane Traore , Constantine C. C. Tsang , Jake D. Turner , Santiago Vanegas , Roger Venable , John C. Wilson , Carlos A. Zuluaga , Jorge I. Zuluaga

Retention of CO Ice and Gas Within 486958 Arrokoth

Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs) represent some of the most ancient remnants of our solar system, having evaded significant thermal or evolutionary processing. This makes them important targets for exploration as they offer a unique opportunity…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2024-03-04 Samuel P. D. Birch , Orkan M. Umurhan

The Properties and Origins of Kuiper Belt Object Arrokoth's Large Mounds

We report on a study of the mounds that dominate the appearance of Kuiper Belt Object (KBO) (486958) Arrokoth's larger lobe, named Wenu. We compare the geological context of these mounds, measure and intercompare their shapes,…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2023-09-01 S. A. Stern , O. L. White , Wm. Grundy , B. A. Keeney , J. D. Hofgartner , D. Nesvorny , W. B. McKinnon , D. C. Richardson , J. C. Marohnic , A. J. Verbiscer , S. D. Benecchi , P. M. Schenk , J. M. Moore

The New Horizons Extended Mission Target: Arrokoth Search and Discovery

Following the Pluto fly-by of the New Horizons spacecraft, the mission provided a unique opportunity to explore the Kuiper Belt in-situ. The possibility existed to fly-by a Kuiper Belt object (KBO) as well as to observe additional objects…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2024-07-08 Marc W. Buie , John R. Spencer , Simon B. Porter , Susan D. Benecchi , Alex H. Parker , S. Alan Stern , Michael Belton , Richard P. Binzel , David Borncamp , Francesca DeMeo , S. Fabbro , Cesar Fuentes , Hisanori Furusawa , Tetsuharu Fuse , Pamela L. Gay , Stephen Gwyn , Matthew J. Holman , H. Karoji , J. J. Kavelaars , Daisuke Kinoshita , Satoshi Miyazaki , Matt Mountain , Keith S. Noll , David J. Osip , Jean-Marc Petit , Neill I. Reid , Scott S. Sheppard , Mark Showalter , Andrew J. Steffl , Ray E. Sterner , Akito Tajitsu , David J. Tholen , David E. Trilling , Harold A. Weaver , Anne J. Verbiscer , Lawrence H. Wasserman , Takuji Yamashita , Toshifumi Yanagisawa , Fumi Yoshida , Amanda M. Zangari

Origin of (2014) MU69-like Kuiper-belt contact binaries from wide binaries

Following its flyby and first imaging the Pluto-Charon binary, the New Horizons spacecraft visited the Kuiper-Belt-Object (KBO) (486958) 2014 MU69 (Arrokoth). Imaging showed MU69 to be a contact-binary, made of two individual lobes…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-04-28 Evgeni Grishin , Uri Malamud , Hagai B. Perets , Oliver Wandel , Christoph M. Schaefer

Dynamical environments of (486958) Arrokoth: prior evolution and present state

We consider dynamical environments of (486958) Arrokoth, focusing on both their present state and their long-term evolution, starting from the KBO's formation. Both analytical (based on an upgraded Kepler-map formalism) and numerical (based…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2023-02-22 Ivan I. Shevchenko , José Lages , Dmitrii E. Vavilov , Guillaume Rollin

The First High-Phase Observations of a KBO: New Horizons Imaging of (15810) 1994 JR1 from the Kuiper Belt

NASA's New Horizons spacecraft observed (15810) 1994 JR$_1$, a 3:2 resonant Kupier Belt Object (KBO), using the LOng Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) on November 2, 2015 from a distance of 1.85 AU, and again on April 7, 2016 from a…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2016-09-05 Simon B. Porter , John R. Spencer , Susan Benecchi , Anne Verbiscer , Amanda M. Zangari , H. A. Weaver , Tod R. Lauer , Alex H. Parker , Marc W. Buie , Andrew F. Cheng , Leslie A. Young , Cathy B. Olkin , Kimberly Ennico , S. Alan Stern , the New Horizons Science Team

Direct contact binary planetesimal formation from gravitational collapse

Bilobate contact binaries comprise a significant fraction of the relict Kuiper Belt, which includes the exemplary contact binary (486958) Arrokoth. The surfaces of its lobes contain similar amounts of highly volatile chemical species and…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2026-02-19 Jackson T. Barnes , Stephen R. Schwartz , Seth A. Jacobson