Space & astronomy · the experiment
Reshape Quaoar
Thirty-seven star shadows revealed a stretched Quaoar. Spin it, turn it into a ball of the same volume, then weigh its little moon.
1 · Show its largest face
Beginner
Why does a stretched Quaoar give two peaks of light per turn?
Spin Quaoar until it shows you its largest face, the one that reflects the most light.
2 · Turn it into a ball
Intermediate
Quaoar weighs 1.208 × 10²¹ kg. What is its density?
Set the radius of a ball until it has exactly Quaoar's volume.
3 · Weigh its little moon
Quaoar wobbles around the centre of mass it shares with Weywot. Its offset is 0.0012 times Weywot's position: that is the ratio of their masses.
Expert
With Quaoar at 1.208 × 10²¹ kg, how much does Weywot weigh?
4 · Place a small moon
A small moon would orbit 1,100 km from Quaoar's centre.
Expert
According to the team's simulations, what would happen to it?
Quaoar reshaped
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