The dwarf planet Eris and its Moon Dysnomia orbit far beyond the orbit of Pluto. Eris, formerly known as 2003 UB313 or Xena, is the second largest dwarf planet, after Pluto. A dwarf planet is defined as an object large enough to be spherical due to its gravity, and with an independent orbit around the Sun (so not a satellite of a planet). A true planet has to dominate its orbit around the Sun. Eris fails because it is one of many Kuiper Belt objects in the outer solar system. Eris is 2326 km across, while its substantial moon has a diameter of 684 km. The moon, Dysnomia, is now shown directly in this image, but it is castring a sharp shadow onto the surface of Eriis. | |
Lizenzart: | Lizenzpflichtig |
Credit: | Science Photo Library / Garlick, Mark |
Bildgröße: | 6000 px × 3900 px |
Modell-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
Eigentums-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
Restrictions: | - |