Makemake

Makemake (minor planet designation 136472) is a dwarf planet and perhaps the largest Kuiper belt object in the classical population, with a diameter approximately two thirds that of Pluto. NOTE: Currently no detailed imagery of Makemake is available. These images are taken from a procedurally generated environment, and do not reflect what the real Makemake actually looks like.

## Discovery Information

### Discoverer

* Michael E. Brown
* Chad A. Trujillo
* David L. Rabinowitz
* Date: 31 March 2005

## Physical Properties

### Diameter

* As listed in Space Engine: 1500 km
* Recent estimate: (1502 ± 45) × (1430 ± 9) km

## Additional Information

### Position in Star System

12th (In Space Engine, major dwarf planets are counted too)

## Definition

Makemake is a large transneptunian object located in the Kuiper belt. It is estimated to have an equatorial diameter of 1502 ± 45 km and a polar diameter of 1430 ± 9 km, which gives it an almost spherical shape. The IAU has decided to classify Makemake as a dwarf planet because it is large enough to assume hydrostatic equilibrium but it hasn’t cleared its orbital neighbourhood (which would make it a planet). Furthermore, it is also classified as a plutoid because it is a dwarf planet orbiting beyond Neptune’s orbit.
Makemake was discovered by Mike E. Brown from CalTech, Chad Trujillo from the Gemini Observatory and David Rabinowitz from Yale University on March 31, 2005, with the Oschin-Schmidt telescope at the Mount Palomar Observatory. The discovery was announced on 29 July 2005. On the same day, the major transneptunian objects Haumea and Eris were also introduced to the public. According to current knowledge these three objects, together with Pluto, are the four largest known Kuiper belt objects. Makemake’s mean diameter of 1477 km is equivalent to about 62% of Pluto’s diameter and its apparent brightness is around 17 mag, making it the second brightest object after Pluto in the Kuiper belt.

## Naming

“Easterbunny” was the first informal name given to Makemake by the team of scientists who were investigating it, because it was observed shortly after Easter. Later on, it was referred to as 2005 FY9, which was its provisory designation. Eventually, like other dwarf planets, Makemake was named after a deity related to creation. More precisely, Makemake (also written as MakeMake or Make-Make) is the name of the fertility god who created humanity in the Rapa Nui mythology of Easter Island. This name was chosen in order to preserve the object’s connection with Easter.

## Orbit

Makemake’s orbit has a slight eccentricity of 0.159 and its orbital distance ranges from 38.590 AU (5.76 billion km) at perihelion to 52.840 AU (7.94 billion km) at aphelion. It has an orbital period of 309.09 Earth years, and takes about 7.77 Earth hours to complete a single sidereal rotation. Since its orbit is distant enough from Neptune to be independent from its gravitational pull, it has no orbital resonance and is thus termed a classical Kuiper Belt object (also known as cubewano).

## Interior structure and surface

Makemake’s mean density is estimated to be somewhere in the range of 1.4–3.2 g/cm3. It is thought to have a differentiated internal structure consisting of a rocky core and a crust composed mainly of methane and ethane.

## Moon

In April 2015, a satellite orbiting Makemake has been discovered using the Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field Camera 3. The discovery of S/2015 (136472) 1, nicknamed MK2, was announced 26 April 2016. It has an estimated diameter of 175 km and orbits its parent with a semi-major axis of at least 21,000 km.

1. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Makemake
2. ↑ http://www.universetoday.com/15535/newest-dwarf-planet-and-plutoid-makemake/
3. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clearing\_the\_neighbourhood
4. ↑ https://www.iau.org/public/themes/naming/#dwarfplanets
5. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Makemake\_(deity)