Overview

• The LiDO survey used the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope alongside follow-up observations from Gemini and Magellan Baade to detect 2020 VN40 at approximately 140 AU on a tilt exceeding 30°.
• Precise orbital measurements confirm the object completes one solar circuit for every ten orbits by Neptune, marking an inaugural 10:1 relationship.
• Its steep 33° orbit tilt produces alignments that bring it nearest the sun when Neptune is directly overhead in projection, a pattern unseen in other resonant objects.
• Simulations classify 2020 VN40 as a scattering-sticking object that will eventually drift out of its present orbital alignment over hundreds of millions of years.
• With more than 140 inclined bodies cataloged, the LiDO team expects the Vera C. Rubin Observatory to uncover additional distant resonators.