Weywot
Quaoar and Weywot (left of Quaoar) imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2006 | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by |
|
| Discovery date | 14 February 2006 |
| Designations | |
Designation | (50000) Quaoar I |
| Pronunciation | /ˈweɪwɒt/ |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch 21 September 2006 (JD 2454000) | |
| 13329±19 km | |
| Eccentricity | 0.01111+0.0044 −0.0040 |
| 12.42727±0.00003 d | |
| 79°+39° −27° | |
| Inclination | 13.62°+0.32° −0.33° (to ecliptic) |
| 353.3°+0.83° −0.85° | |
| 97°+28° −37° | |
| Satellite of | 50000 Quaoar |
| Physical characteristics | |
| ≈ 165 km | |
| Mass | 2.4+1.2 −1.1×1018 kg |
Mean density | 0.5 to 1.5 g/cm3 |
| Albedo | ≈ 0.04 |
| 24.7 | |
| ≈ 8.3 | |
Weywot (formal designation (50000) Quaoar I) is the only confirmed moon of the trans-Neptunian dwarf planet Quaoar. It was discovered by Michael Brown and Terry-Ann Suer using images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope on 14 February 2006. It is named after the Tongva sky god and son of Quaoar. Weywot is about 165 km (103 mi) in diameter and orbits Quaoar every 12.4 days at an average distance of 13,300 km (8,300 mi). Weywot is thought to play a role in maintaining Quaoar's outer ring by gravitationally influencing it in an orbital resonance.