TORRANCE TRIBUNE October 19, 2017 Page 9
Looking Up
Haumea, the Most Peculiar of Pluto Companions, Has a Ring Around It
says José Luis Ortiz, researcher at IAA in
charge of the study. “This allowed us to reconstruct
with a very high precision the shape
and size of Haumea, and discover to our
surprise that it is considerably bigger and less
reflecting than was previously believed. It is
also much less dense than previously thought.”
Haumea is an interesting object: it rotates
around the Sun in an elliptic orbit which takes
it 284 years to complete (it presently lies 50
times further from the Sun than the Earth),
and it takes 3.9 hours to rotate around its
axis. This rotational speed causes it to flatten
out, giving it an ellipsoid shape similar
to a rugby ball. The recently published data
reveal that Haumea measures about 1,400
miles in its largest axis—almost the same
as Pluto—but lacks the global atmosphere
Artist concept of Haumea, with the correct proportions of the main body and the ring. The ring is at a distance of 2287 kilometers
from the center of the main body and is darker than the surface of the dwarf planet itself. Image from Instituto de Astrofísica de
Andalucía (IAA-CSIC).
Based on Press Release from the
Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía,
Provided by Bob Eklund
At the ends of the Solar System, beyond
the orbit of Neptune, there is a belt of
objects composed of ice and rocks, among
which four dwarf planets stand out: Pluto,
Eris, Makemake and Haumea. The latter is
the least well known of the four and was
recently the object of an international
observation campaign which was able to
establish its main physical characteristics.
The study, led by astronomers from the Institute
of Astrophysics of Andalusia (IAA) in
Granada, Spain, and published in the journal
Nature, reveals the presence of a ring around
the planet.
Trans-neptunian objects are difficult to
study because of their small size, their low
brightness, and the enormous distances that
separate us from them. A very efficient but
complex method lies in the study of stellar
occultations, or the passing of these objects
in front of a star. It allows astronomers to
determine the main physical characteristics of
an object (size, shape, and density) and has
been successfully applied to dwarf planets
Pluto, Eris and Makemake.
“We predicted that Haumea would pass in
front of a star on the 21st of January 2017,
and 12 telescopes from ten different European
observatories converged on the phenomenon,”
that Pluto has.
“One of the most interesting and unexpected
findings was the discovery of
a ring around Haumea. Until a few years
ago we only knew of the existence of
rings around the giant planets; then, recently,
our team discovered that two small bodies
situated between Jupiter and Neptune,
belonging to a group called centaurs, have
dense rings around them, which came as a
big surprise. Now we have discovered that
bodies even farther away than the centaurs,
bigger and with very different general characteristics,
can also have rings,” says IAA’s
Pablo Santos-Sanz.
According to the data obtained from the
stellar occultation, the ring lies on the equatorial
plane of the dwarf planet, just like its
biggest satellite, Hi´iaka, and it displays a
3:1 resonance with respect to the rotation
of Haumea, which means that the frozen
particles which compose the ring rotate three
times slower around the planet than it rotates
around its own axis.
Haumea is the name of the goddess of
childbirth and fertility in Hawaiian mythology.
The name is particularly apt, as the
goddess Haumea also represents the element
of stone and observations of Haumea
hint that the dwarf planet is composed
largely of stony material with a crust of
pure ice. •
C e r t i f i e d a n d L i c e n s e d P r o f e s s i o n a l s
painting
PAINTERS PLUS
INTERIOR • EXTERIOR
PLUS
IMPROVEMENTS • REPAIRS
FREE ESTIMATES
LOWEST PRICES • GUARANTEED QUALITY
5 YEAR FREE MAINTENANCE
SERVING THE BEACH CITIES
FOR OVER 20 YEARS
CALL DON 310-798-0450
LIC # 726089
handyman
BILL’S
HOME & APARTMENT
MAINTENANCE
CONTRACTOR QUALITY
at Handyman Prices.
We cover everything from A-Z.
Bill Henrichon
Cell: 310-890-7531
Office: 310-542-3470
billhenrichon@sbcglobal.net
Henrichon & Associates Inc.
CA ST LIC# 1011547 / Licensed & Insured
2011 2012 2013
Serving the South Bay for 25 years
FREE ESTIMATES
CERTIFIED BUSINESS AND
PROFESSIONAL (B&P) ADS
SIX MONTHS – $450 • ONE YEAR – $800
We will create your B&P ad for you, at no additional cost.
For information or rates, call 310-529-3227.
Interested parties email: bp@heraldpublications.com
PICK YOUR NEWSPAPER!
All Six (or Pick And Choose)
concrete
LINDAHL
CONCRETE, INC.
Specializing in all Residential Concrete
• Driveways • Patios • Pool Decks
• Stone • Pavers • Stamping
Call Casey or Carl - Lic. 531387
310-326-6626
Casey Lindahl founder of Lindahl Concrete Inc.
WE ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS
WWW.LINDAHLCONCRETE.COM
handyman
TOUCHSTONE
Reasonably Priced – Referrals Upon Request
310-517-9677
SENIOR
DISCOUNTS
ContraCtor
Kitchen and Bathroom Specialist,
Room Additions, Plumbing,
Electrical, Painting
we do it all with our own crew!
Painting
of El SEgundo
Interior & Exterior
NO Job too Small • Free Estimates
plumbing
24
Hour
Service
Since 1990 • Lic # 770059 • C-42 C-36 C-34 C20 A
Sewer Video Inspection
Rooter Service • Copper Repipes
310-543-2001
SouthweSt
Pool Service & rePair
EL SEGUNDO LOCAL
35 YEARS FULLY LICENSED
Small jobs OK!
painting
plumbing
Phone/Text
gardening
CALL OR TEXT BRIAN
310-493-7811 310-322-7396
construction
Foundation Replacement/Repairs
House Bolting • Floor Leveling
Soft Story Retrofit
FREE INSPECTION
Low Price Guarantee - 0% Financing Available
BONDED & INSURED 323-733-3377 LIC. #788526
OVER 40 THOUSAND PAPERS DELIVERED WITHIN MILES OF YOUR HOME OR BUSINESS.
Over 40 thousand papers delivered within miles of your home or business.
Stamping
Pool Decks
painting
Frederick’s
Call Freddy 310-910-4841
LIC #948597
roofing
NICK’S ROOFING
SERVICE
310-697-9147
CA License # 1009097
Free
Estimates
FULL SERVICE PLUMBING
310.738.7094
23 YEARS EXPERIENCE
Sewer Video • Hydrojetting • Bonded • Insured
CA LIC. #980971
plumbing
FOR ALL YOUR PLUMBING NEEDS
We offer
Senior Discounts • We match any pricing • Open 24/7 • Free Estimates
License # 537357
1-310-782-1978
EL SEGUNDO
GARDENER
Licensed/Bonded
All E.S. Crew, Lawn Service Clean Ups,
Tree Trim, Sprinklers, Handyman, etc.
Lic# 100085424
For One Price!
Herald Publications newspapers: El Segundo Herald,
Hawthorne Press Tribune, Inglewood Daily News,
Lawndale Tribune, Manhattan Beach Sun and Torrance
Tribune. We take Visa and MasterCard. Please always
include your phone number with your submission.
Payment must be received before ad is published.
RICH’S PAINTING
Specializing in exterior
Quality interior work
Reliable • Reasonable Rates
310-640-9465
PAINTING • PLASTERING
HANDYMAN
30 Year Business and Resident in the South Bay
Julian Construction, Inc.
www.julianconstruction.com
YOUR
AD
HERE
Email to reserve your space
marketing@heraldpublications.com
YOUR
AD
HERE
Email to reserve your space
marketing@heraldpublications.com
handyman
Craftsmanship
Call Manny 310-729-9612
pool services
RON SMITH 213-200-8873
CA ST LIC #768124
YOUR
AD
HERE
Email to reserve your space
marketing@heraldpublications.com