120347 Salacia facts for kids

Salacia and its moon Actaea, imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope on 21 July 2006

120347 Salacia is a trans-Neptunian object in the Kuiper belt. It is approximately 850 kilometers in diameter. As of 2018, it is found about 44.8 astronomical units from the Sun.

Discovery

Salacia was discovered on 22 September 2004, by American astronomers Henry Roe, Michael Brown and Kristina Barkume at the Palomar Observatory in California, United States. It was named after the Roman goddess Salacia. It has one known moon, Actaea.

Physical characteristics

It has an average density of 1.51 g/cm³. Salacia is estimated to be around 846 km in diameter. Salacia has the lowest albedo of any known large trans-Neptunian object.

Images for kids

• 

  The orbit of Salacia is similar to Pluto, except for a near opposite longitude of ascending node. Its current position is near its most northern position above the ecliptic.

• 

  Artistic model of Salacia and Actaea's near circular orbit viewed at an angle

See also

In Spanish: (120347) Salacia para niños