Return to Astronomy IndexKuiper Belt
The Kuiper Belt is the second "Asteroid Belt" that exist in the solar system. The belt is located beyond the orbit of Neptune. The Kuiper Belt is made up of objects called "Trans-Neptunian's." The planet Pluto orbits within this region and has been considered by some to be the largest of the Kuiper Belt objects. However, Pluto remains classified a planet and not a "Trans-Neptunian" object . The Kuiper bodies are made up of ice and rock. These objects are thought to be left over proto-planets "Planetestials" from the formation of the solar system. Several of these objects have been detected by ground and space telescopes. The Hubble Telescope discovered in 2002 "Quaoar" a large Kuiper Belt object.
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Quaoar orbit is at least a 1 billion miles further away from the Sun than does Pluto and is at least 4 billion miles from Earth. Quaoar is mainly made up of ice and rock and at 800 miles in diameter is slightly larger than half the size of Pluto. Because of its small size ,Quaoar at this time will not be classified as a planet.
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"Quaoar" Artist Concept |
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Photos Courtesy of NASA/JPL
