(15760) 1992 QB₁ (also written (15760) 1992 QB1) was the first trans-Neptunian object to be discovered after Pluto and Charon. It was discovered in 1992 and is now classified as a cubewano, an object in the main Kuiper Belt. The term cubewano derives from "QB1".

(15760) 1992 QB₁ was discovered by David C. Jewitt and Jane X. Luu at the Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawaii. The discoverers suggested the name "Smiley" for the object,^[3] but as there is already an asteroid named 1613 Smiley (named after an American astronomer) the name could not be used. The asteroid has received the number 15760, and remains unnamed; it is normally referred to simply as "QB1" (this is ambiguous, as it could refer to any of seven other numbered asteroids —(7026) 1993 QB₁, (31114) 1997 QB₁, (36447) 2000 QB₁, (52468) 1995 QB₁, (175357) 2005 QB₁, (180774) 2004 QB₁, and (214558) 2006 QB₁— and many unnumbered ones).

The next three official cubewanos are (15807) 1994 GV₉, (16684) 1994 JQ₁, and (19255) 1994 VK₈.^[4]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Orbital simulation from JPL (Java) / Ephemeris
• The IAU circular announcing the discovery

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