I wasn’t fully paying attention to the programme it was on (BBC Solar System), but if I remember correctly it’s basically the centrifugal force from how fast it spins squashes and stretches it.
I think they concluded it had survived a massive impact in its early(er) life which accounts for its spin, shape, orbit, and tiny moons.
I just realised that the link to wiki I put in OP disappeared in to the void, if you wanna have a read from a more reliable source lol: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haumea
No, but not directly because of its shape. It’s more that any planet with enough mass to hang on to an atmosphere will also be massive enough to squish itself into a sphere.
I wasn’t fully paying attention to the programme it was on (BBC Solar System), but if I remember correctly it’s basically the centrifugal force from how fast it spins squashes and stretches it.
I wonder if it has to do with it’s elliptical orbit too.
I think they concluded it had survived a massive impact in its early(er) life which accounts for its spin, shape, orbit, and tiny moons.
I just realised that the link to wiki I put in OP disappeared in to the void, if you wanna have a read from a more reliable source lol: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haumea
Thanks! Can a planet of that shape hold an atmosphere?
No, but not directly because of its shape. It’s more that any planet with enough mass to hang on to an atmosphere will also be massive enough to squish itself into a sphere.
I’m not sure. It does have a ring though!