The object, named 2026 ED138, was identified using observations from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile and is estimated to measure between 600 and 1,500 kilometres across. Astronomers have discovered a massive object in the outer Solar System that could become the sixth officially recognised dwarf planet.
Scientists believe the object could be among the largest dwarf planet candidates discovered beyond Neptune. (Also read: Pune scientists discover S-shaped galaxy with unique four cycles of black hole activity ) The discovery was announced on October 27 by the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center.
Researchers subsequently discovered something even more surprising. Astrophysicist Matthew Holman of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics spotted the object on October 13 while analysing data collected by the observatory earlier this year. The object had appeared in archival images captured by the Dark Energy Camera as far back as February 2016, meaning evidence of its existence had remained unnoticed for more than a decade. (Also read: Scientists suggest Van Gogh’s Starry Night depicts real sky from July 1889, challenging long-held belief )
