Vera C. Rubin Observatory spots possible new dwarf planet beyond Pluto
Summary
Scientists may add a new dwarf planet to the solar system's official roster after the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile spotted a distant, icy body beyond Pluto. The provisionally named object, 2026 ED138, was hidden in the light of the Milky Way's stars and was spotted earlier this month by a scientist combing through data from the Simonyi Survey Telescope at the observatory. Space.com reports that it lies beyond Neptune's orbit and would be the sixth known dwarf planet if confirmed, while The New York Times calls it probably a new dwarf planet and one of the observatory's first discoveries.
Timeline
Scientific American
Source ↗Scientific American reports that the Vera C. Rubin Observatory may have discovered the solar system's sixth dwarf planet, located farther from Earth than Pluto and hidden in the light of the Milky Way's stars.
Phys.org
Source ↗Phys.org reports that scientists may add a new dwarf planet to the official roster, a distant icy body provisionally named 2026 ED138 that orbits beyond Pluto and was spotted earlier this month by a scientist analyzing data from the Simonyi Survey Telescope at the NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory.
The New York Times
Source ↗The New York Times reports that the object, known for now as 2026 ED138, is probably a new dwarf planet beyond Pluto and one of the first discoveries by the new Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile.
Space.com
Source ↗Space.com reports that the Vera Rubin Observatory has discovered a suspected dwarf planet beyond Neptune's orbit that would be the sixth known dwarf planet in the solar system if confirmed.
The Straits Times
Source ↗The Straits Times reports that scientists using a Chile-based telescope have identified an icy object orbiting beyond Pluto that may join the solar system's small roster of dwarf planets.
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