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20000 Varuna is a large icy body orbiting the Sun in the distant Kuiper Belt region beyond Neptune. It is scientifically important because studying objects like Varuna helps astronomers understand the composition and history of the early solar system.
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20000 Varuna (provisional designation 2000 WR106) is a large trans-Neptunian object in the Kuiper belt. It was discovered in November 2000 by American astronomer Robert McMillan during a Spacewatch survey at the Kitt Peak National Observatory. It is named after the Hindu deity Varuna, one of the oldest deities mentioned in the Vedic texts.
Varuna's light curve is compatible with the body being a Jacobi ellipsoid, suggesting that it has an elongated shape due to its rapid rotation. Varuna's surface is moderately red in color due to the presence of complex organic compounds on its surface. Water ice is also present on its surface, and is thought to have been exposed by past collisions which may have also caused Varuna's rapid rotation. Although no natural satellites have been found or directly imaged around Varuna, analysis of variations in its light curve in 2019 suggests the presence of a possible satellite orbiting closely around Varuna. Assumptions that the body is in hydrostatic equilibrium (and thus a dwarf planet) result in a calculated density too low for it to be a dwarf planet.
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Astronomical objects discovered in 2000Classical Kuiper belt objectsDiscoveries by the Spacewatch projectJPL Small-Body Database ID different from WikidataMinor planet object articles (numbered)Named minor planetsNamed TNOsObjects observed by stellar occultationPossible dwarf planetsTrans-Neptunian objects