Because neither object truly orbits the other and charon has 12 2 the mass of pluto it has been argued that charon should be considered to be part of a binary system with pluto. It is the biggest known moon of a dwarf planet. Hence pluto does orbit that center like other moons. Gravitational center barycenter of the system is slightly shifted out from center of pluto because of charon s big gravitational influence. The blue cross shows where the barycenter is source.
When the less massive object is far away the barycenter can be located outside the more massive object. Charon is 12 the mass of pluto and they re both tidally locked. That means the rotation periods and orbit. One interesting aspect of the pluto system is the fact that the mass ratio of charon to pluto is large enough that the barycenter of their orbit is outside the bodies of both charon and pluto. Together with the tidal locking there is another fact about pluto charon system to mention.
Charon completes the orbit around the common gravitational center barycenter in 6 39 earth days. This is the case for pluto and charon one of pluto s natural satellites as well as for many binary asteroids and binary stars. Pluto and charon are so close in mass that they actually orbit each other around a central point called a barycenter shown here as the purple diamond. The relationship between pluto and charon is abstract. Charon is the largest with a diameter just over half of pluto.
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They are considered to have a binary system relation since the barycenter of their orbits do not lie within either body. When the less massive object is far away the barycenter can be located outside the more massive object. Because neither object truly orbits the other and charon has 12 2 the mass of pluto it has been argued that charon should be considered to be part of a binary system with pluto.
