A New Dwarf Planet (Probably) Spotted Beyond Pluto

What BBN said about it

1. 

   Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorAstronomers using the new Vera C.

2. 

   Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorRubin Observatory in Chile have spotted what may be a new dwarf planet beyond Pluto, The New York Times reports.

3. 

   Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorProbably. The headline says probably. I like a headline that admits it might be wrong.

4. 

   Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorIt's called 2026 ED138 for now, and it's one of the first discoveries the observatory has made.

5. 

   Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorSix hundred to fifteen hundred kilometres across. That's the estimate. So it's somewhere between a big city and a small country.

6. 

   Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe researcher found it on the evening of the thirteenth of October, running older Rubin data through a search code he built with a colleague.

7. 

   Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorOlder data. It was sitting in the files the whole time. And somebody went back and looked. That's rather lovely.

8. 

   Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorDale.

9. 

   Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorScientists need to see it pull itself round. I assume the application says, quote, I am quite round, and I can provide references.

10. 

    Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorIf it passes, it joins Pluto, Ceres, Eris, Haumea and Makemake. Five worlds in that family, and a sixth knocking. Good news, plainly.

11. 

    Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorIt's out there on a tilted orbit, nearly twenty-five degrees off the plane, minding its own business.

12. 

    Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorCan we at least give it a name warmer than 2026 ED138?