Makemake

In Depth
 Along with fellow dwarf planets Pluto and Haumea, Makemake is located
in the Kuiper Belt, a region outside the orbit of Neptune. Astronomers
believe it is slightly smaller than Pluto.

 It takes 310 Earth years for this dwarf planet to make one orbit around our
Sun.

 Astronomers found signs of frozen nitrogen on Makemake's surface.

Frozen ethane and methane have also been detected on the surface.

 Astronomers believe the methane may actually be present in pellets as

large as one centimeter in diameter. They found evidence of tholins,
molecules that form whenever solar ultraviolet light interacts with
substances such as ethane and methane.

[Tholins are a broad class of complex organicmolecules. They are typically

formed when ultraviolet light strikes simple organic molecules such as
methane. ... The reddish brown coloring of the dwarf planet is likely caused
by tholins on its surface]

 Tholins usually cause a reddish-brown color and Makemake does

have a reddish color in observations.

 Makemake holds an important place in the solar system because it -- along

with Eris -- was one of the objects whose discovery prompted the
International Astronomical Union to reconsider the definition of a planet
and to create the new group of dwarf planets.

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Discovery:

 Makemake was first observed in March 2005 by M.E. Brown, C.A.

Trujillo, and D.L. Rabinowitz at the Palomar Observatory. Its unofficial
codename was Easterbunny.

 It was officially recognized as a dwarf planet by the International

Astronomical Union in 2008.

How Makemake Got its Name:

 Originally designated 2005 FY9, Makemake (pronounced mah-

kee-mah-kee) is named after the god of fertility in Rapanui
mythology.

 "Makemake's surface is covered with large amounts of almost

pure methane ice, which is scientifically fascinating, but really
not easily relatable to terrestrial mythology.

Makemake: By the Numbers

 Discovery
 Date of Discovery: 31 Mar. 2005
Discovered By: M. E. Brown, C. A. Trujillo, and D. L. Rabinowitz
 Orbit Size Around Sun
 Metric: 6,783,345,606 km
English: 4,214,975,546 miles
Scientific Notation: 6.7833456 x 109 km
Astronomical Units: 4.5343864 x 101 A.U.
By Comparison: 45.344
 Mean Orbit Velocity
 Metric: 15,816 km/h
English: 9,828 mph
Scientific Notation: 4.3934 x 103 m/s
By Comparison: 0.148
 Orbit Eccentricity

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 0.163844964
By Comparison: 9.804
 Sidereal Rotation Period
 0.937 Earth Days
22.48000 Hours
By Comparison: 0.94