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Arrokoth

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Astronomical Object

The Resume

    Classical Kuiper Belt object
    Consists of two planetesimals joined along their primary axis
    Maximum dimensions: 22 miles long, 12 miles wide, 6 miles thick
    Average distance from the Sun is 44.6 astronomical units (4,150,000,000 miles)
    Orbital period is 293 years
    First observed by Marc Blue and the New Horizons Search Team using the Hubble Space Telescope (June 26, 2014)
    Named after a word for ‘sky’ in the Powhatan language; name accepted by the International Astronomical Union (November 8, 2019)
    The New Horizons space probe performed a flyby, passing within 2,200 miles of Arrokoth (January 1, 2020)

Why Arrokoth might be annoying:

    Before its official name was formally adopted, it was referred to as ‘Ultima Thule,’ which was criticized because Nazi occultists had used ‘Thule’ as their designation for the mythic home of the Aryan race.
    Because the Powhatan language went extinct in the 19th century and was not well recorded, the correct pronunciation of its name is uncertain.
    It has been described as looking like ‘a partially flattened snowman.’

Why Arrokoth might not be annoying:

    It is the most distant object visited by a spacecraft.
    It is believed to have been unchanged for billions of years, providing a glimpse into the early history of the Solar System.
    Data from studying it may explain how the planets formed.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 113 Votes: 28.32% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 54.55% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying