Astronomers Combine Hubble and Webb Data to Discover Smallest Trans-Neptunian Objects

For the first time, astronomers have combined observations from the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes to identify some of the smallest and faintest objects in the outer Solar System, known as trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs). Two teams of PhD candidates used both telescopes' visible-light and infrared capabilities to examine 27 newly found TNOs, with the smallest measuring just 5 km wide. The findings, published in the Astronomical Journal, suggest these icy relics retain their original colors, preserving clues about the early Solar System's formation.