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Paper: Statistics of Optical Colors of KBOs and Centaurs
Volume: 371, Statistical Challenges in Modern Astronomy IV
Page: 210
Authors: Romanishin, W.; Tegler, S.C.
Abstract: There are now almost 1200 cataloged minor bodies in the outer solar system. There is a rich dynamical diversity, with the Centaurs crossing the orbits of the outer planets, Plutinos in resonant orbits with Neptune (as is Pluto), the classical KBOs (CKBOs) in near circular orbits away from the resonant effects of Neptune, and scattered disk objects (SDOs) possessing eccentric orbits with large perihelia, presumably scattered from smaller orbits. We have been measuring the optical colors of these objects for the last 10 years and now have measured colors for a sample of about 120 objects. I will discuss our findings concerning several questions: (1) Do the different dynamical classes have statistically different color distributions? (2) Do these objects have a bimodal or a unimodal color distribution?
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