Patroclus-Menoetius mutual events season 2024

Our data set consisted of ground-based and Hubble Space Telescope relative astrometry, as well as 42 lightcurves from the mutual events seasons in 2007, 2012, and 2017/2018. Our dynamical model included the effects of oblate, nonspherical shapes of the components, and we assumed that Menoetius contained ~22% of the system's mass.

We numerically integrated the equations of motion and obtained a set of dynamical parameters that fit the data. We report the fit results in terms of residuals, state vectors, orbital elements and their 1{sigma} uncertainties. The mean osculating semimajor axis is a=692.5{+/-}4.0km, the mean eccentricity is e=0.004{+/-}0.004, and the International Celestial Reference Frame pole direction in R.A. and decl. is R.A=178.0{+/-}0.5deg, {delta}=-74.1{+/-}0.2deg.