88611 Teharonhiawako is a trans-Neptunian object

Trans-Neptunian object

A trans-Neptunian object is any minor planet in the Solar System that orbits the Sun at a greater distance on average than Neptune.The first trans-Neptunian object to be discovered was Pluto in 1930...

 and a member of the Kuiper belt

Kuiper belt

The Kuiper belt , sometimes called the Edgeworth–Kuiper belt, is a region of the Solar System beyond the planets extending from the orbit of Neptune to approximately 50 AU from the Sun. It is similar to the asteroid belt, although it is far larger—20 times as wide and 20 to 200 times as massive...

, measuring 156–196 km in diameter. It is a binary object, with a large companion named Sawiskera ' onMouseout='HidePop("27421")' href="/topics/Mohawk_language">Mohawk

Mohawk language

Mohawk is an Iroquoian language spoken by around 2,000 people of the Mohawk nation in the United States and Canada . Mohawk has the largest number of speakers of the Northern Iroquoian languages; today it is the only one with greater than a thousand remaining...

, formally designed (88611) Teharonhiawako I Sawiskera), which at 108–136 km in diameter is about two-thirds the size of its primary.

Teharonhiawako was discovered on August 20, 2001, by the Deep Ecliptic Survey

Deep Ecliptic Survey

The Deep Ecliptic Survey is a project to find Kuiper belt objects , using the facilities of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory .The principal investigator is Bob Millis....

, and Sawiskera was identified a month later. The primary is named after Teharonhiawako

Teharonhiawako

Teharonhiawako may be:* The good son of the Sky and creator of the Earth in Iroquois mythology* A Kuiper-belt object, 88611 Teharonhiawako...

, a god of maize

Maize

Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...

 in the Iroquois

Iroquois mythology

Much of the mythology of the Iroquois has been lost. Some of their religious stories have been preserved, including creation stories and some folktales....

 creation myth, while the secondary is named after his evil twin brother Sawiskera

Iroquois mythology

Much of the mythology of the Iroquois has been lost. Some of their religious stories have been preserved, including creation stories and some folktales....

. The objects were named in 2007.

External links

• Orbital simulation from JPL (Java) / Ephemeris