The 4-Point Backyard Diurnal Parllax Method Tested on a Challenging Far Away Target: Dwarf Planet 134340 Pluto
Abstract
Asteroid distances can be easily determined using an amateur-level telescope and CCD from a single station, not requiring any data other than strictly derived from direct observations. Despite the simplicity of the 4-Point Backyard procedure - which only necessitates observations from two consecutive nights, just obtained at the beginning of each night and at each culmination - we had achieved an excellent accuracy for a set of asteroids out to a distance of 2.6 au. Now we have pushed the simple backyard diurnal parallax method in order to test its viability on a previously inconceivably distant target - Pluto - placed at more than ten times as far away our previous furthest measured asteroid. Surprisingly, our results were much better than expected. This project demonstrates the suitability of the method despite its evident simplicity, no matter how distant the asteroid target is. However, there are some special considerations with a distant target to ensure that the astrometry is performed with due care.
- Publication:
-
Society for Astronomical Sciences Annual Symposium
- Pub Date:
- May 2013
- Bibcode:
- 2013SASS...32...25A