Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth

E145768

Kuiper Belt object New Horizons flyby target bilobed world cold classical Kuiper Belt object contact binary minor planet trans-Neptunian object

Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth is a distant, bilobed trans-Neptunian world famously visited and imaged in detail by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft after its Pluto flyby.

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All labels observed (11)

Label	Occurrences
486958 Arrokoth	9
Arrokoth	4
2014 MU69	1
Arrokoth (486958) by New Horizons	1
Kuiper Belt extended mission	1
Kuiper Belt object 2014 MU69 (Arrokoth)	1
Kuiper Belt object 486958 Arrokoth	1
Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth canonical	1
MU69 small lobe	1
New Horizons flyby target 2014 MU69	1
contact binary 486958 Arrokoth	1

How this entity was disambiguated

This entity first appeared as the object of triple T1274747 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.

NED1 Entity disambiguation (via context triple) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth
Context triple: [New Horizons, secondaryTarget, Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth]

A. Quaoar
Quaoar is a large, distant trans-Neptunian object in the Kuiper Belt, notable for its nearly circular orbit and for having a small moon named Weywot.
B. Kuiper Belt objects
Kuiper Belt objects are icy celestial bodies orbiting the Sun beyond Neptune, thought to be remnants from the early solar system and the source of many short-period comets.
C. Makemake
Makemake is a large, icy dwarf planet in the Kuiper Belt, known for its extremely cold surface and status as one of the most massive objects beyond Neptune.
D. Eris
Eris is a distant, icy dwarf planet in the outer reaches of the Solar System, notable for its size comparable to Pluto and its role in prompting the redefinition of planetary status.
E. Eris
Eris is the Greek goddess of strife and discord, often depicted as a malevolent force sowing conflict among gods and mortals.
F. None of above. chosen
G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.

NED2 Entity disambiguation (via description) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth
Target entity description: Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth is a distant, bilobed trans-Neptunian world famously visited and imaged in detail by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft after its Pluto flyby.

A. Quaoar
Quaoar is a large, distant trans-Neptunian object in the Kuiper Belt, notable for its nearly circular orbit and for having a small moon named Weywot.
B. Kuiper Belt objects
Kuiper Belt objects are icy celestial bodies orbiting the Sun beyond Neptune, thought to be remnants from the early solar system and the source of many short-period comets.
C. Makemake
Makemake is a large, icy dwarf planet in the Kuiper Belt, known for its extremely cold surface and status as one of the most massive objects beyond Neptune.
D. Eris
Eris is a distant, icy dwarf planet in the outer reaches of the Solar System, notable for its size comparable to Pluto and its role in prompting the redefinition of planetary status.
E. Eris
Eris is the Greek goddess of strife and discord, often depicted as a malevolent force sowing conflict among gods and mortals.
F. None of above. chosen

Statements (49)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	Kuiper Belt object ⓘ New Horizons flyby target ⓘ bilobed world ⓘ cold classical Kuiper Belt object ⓘ contact binary ⓘ minor planet ⓘ trans-Neptunian object ⓘ
albedo	low ⓘ
discoveredBy	New Horizons KBO Search team ⓘ linked to: New Horizons
discoveredUsing	Hubble Space Telescope ⓘ
discoveryDate	2014-06-26 ⓘ
eccentricity	about 0.04 ⓘ
flybyDate	2019-01-01 ⓘ
flybyDistance	about 3,500 kilometers ⓘ
flybyMission	NASA New Horizons ⓘ linked to: New Horizons
formationScenario	gentle merger of two primordial bodies ⓘ
hasDynamicalClass	cold classical Kuiper Belt ⓘ linked to: Kuiper Belt
hasLobes	two main lobes ⓘ
hasMinorPlanetDesignation	486958 Arrokoth ⓘ linked to: Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth
hasNoKnownMoons	true ⓘ
hasNoKnownRings	true ⓘ
inclination	about 2.4 degrees ⓘ
isMostDistantObjectVisitedBySpacecraft	true ⓘ
largerLobeNickname	Ultima ⓘ
locatedIn	Kuiper Belt ⓘ outer Solar System ⓘ
meanDiameter	about 36 kilometers ⓘ
nameApprovalDate	2019-11-12 ⓘ
nameApprovedBy	International Astronomical Union ⓘ
namedAfter	Powhatan/Algonquian word for sky ⓘ
nameMeaning	“sky” in the Powhatan/Algonquian language ⓘ
observedBy	Hubble Space Telescope ⓘ New Horizons LORRI camera ⓘ linked to: LORRI New Horizons Ralph instrument ⓘ
orbitalPeriod	about 298 years ⓘ
orbits	Sun ⓘ
previouslyDesignated	2014 MU69 ⓘ linked to: Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth
previouslyNicknamed	Ultima Thule ⓘ
rotationPeriod	about 15.9 hours ⓘ
scientificSignificance	provides clues to planetesimal formation ⓘ
semiMajorAxis	about 44.6 astronomical units ⓘ
shape	bilobed contact binary ⓘ
smallerLobeNickname	Thule ⓘ
surfaceColor	reddish ⓘ
surfaceComposition	complex organic materials (tholins) ⓘ
surfaceFeatures	bright spots ⓘ depressed neck region ⓘ few craters ⓘ
visitedBy	New Horizons spacecraft ⓘ linked to: New Horizons

How these facts were elicited