Basics
Class: Dwarf planet
Location: Scattered disk
Orbit length (approx): 562.03 years
Discovered: 21st October 2003, 06:25 UTC, from Palomar Observatory, California, by Michael E. Brown, Chad A. Trujillo and David Rabinowitz
Notes: Most massive and second-largest known dwarf planet (ninth known most massive object orbiting the Sun) in the Solar System. High-eccentricity orbit; has one large moon, Dysnomia.
Events at time of discovery:
- October 21 – War on Terrorism: US officials state that they believe Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was killed by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
- – Scientists call for a total ban on fishing for cod in the North Sea to allow stocks to recover from near extinction.
- – The commander of United Nations forces in Afghanistan warns that the security of Kabul is at risk if security is not achieved in the Afghan countryside.
- – Occupation of Iraq: Human Rights Watch (HRW) accuses US troops of using excessive force against civilians in Iraq.
- – Iran’s Supreme Council agrees to comply with the IAEA, allow inspections of its nuclear facilities, and suspend its uranium enrichment program.
- – Outbreaks of locusts are reported in Mauritania, Niger and Sudan.
- – The British Government confirms that elections to Northern Ireland’s devolved administration will be held on November 26. The Provisional IRA announces a further act of weapons decommissioning. Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams declares “the end to physical force republicanism”.
- – Israeli-Palestinian conflict: The UN General Assembly approves a resolution demanding that Israel remove a security fence in the West Bank by an overwhelming majority of 144 to 4, with the US voting against the motion.
- – Ecuador: US oil company ChevronTexaco is charged in court with polluting a once-pristine swath of the Amazon rainforest. The plaintiffs’ lawyers have put a US$1 billion price tag on clean up and medical care for the region’s inhabitants.
- – Death of Fred Berry, 52, American actor
- – Death of Alfred Rose, 71, Indian Konkani singer, composer, and actor
- – Death of Elliott Smith, 34, American musician
- – Death of Arturo Warman, 66, Mexican anthropologist, author, and politician
Naming information
Name origin: Greek goddess or personified spirit (daimona) of strife, discord, contention and rivalry.
Mythology: Eris was often portrayed specifically as the daimona of the strife of war, haunting the battlefield and delighting in human bloodshed. Because of Eris’ disagreeable nature she was the only goddess not to be invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. When she turned up anyway and was refused admittance, she raged and threw in the golden apple that famously led to the Trojan War. She was closely identified with Enyo, the goddess of war and a close companion of Ares.
 |
| 15th century manuscript miniature illustration of Eris throwing the golden apple at the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, from Jean Miélot’s L’Epître d’Othéa. Held at the Royal Library of Belgium. |
Astrological data
Discovery degree: 19+ Aries
Discovery Sabian: A Young Girl Feeding Birds in Winter
Discovery nodal signature: Taurus–Scorpio
Estimated orbital resonances: Saturn 1:19, Chiron 1:11, Uranus 3:20, Neptune 5:17, Pluto 4:9
Discovery chart details: Last quarter phase. Eris was semi-sextile the North Node, square Nessus, quincunx Pholus and sextile Asbolus (all of which also aspected the Nodes). Sun semi-sextile and Saturn sesquiquadrate Vesta-Juno; Saturn also sesquiquadrate Uranus, and opposite Chiron. Pallas trine Pluto. Not many under 1 degree aspects all told.
Summary and references
Indicators given so far include: discord, chaos, the discarded parts of ourselves[1]; strife, discontent, divisiveness, marginalised populations[2]; understanding others and self-revelation[3]; exclusion, alienation, artistic gifts[4]; recognition and exposure of ego-consciousness and blinkered vision leading to discomfort and rejection of the truth[5]; the roots of motivations, growth into adulthood, accepting unavoidable changes, polarisation, comparing viewpoints in the search for truth, debate, test of skills or logic[6]; release from addictions and material attachments, resourcefulness, sense of abandonment, lawlessness, promises and oaths, disruption in order to reorganise[7] – and many more.
References:
1) Amanda Painter: Scorpio Full Moon and Mercury Station Direct
2) Alex Miller: Eris 136199
3) Amable: (136199) Eris
4) Kirsti Melto: New Moon in Aries – April 16, 2018
5) Linda Lee Berry: Eris
6) Zane Stein: Eris Keywords
7) Philip Sedgwick: New Dwarf Planets, Eris, Sedna, Centaurs & More
 |
| Discovery chart for (136199) Eris: 21st October 2003, 06:25 UTC, Palomar Observatory, CA. |
Pingback: Gemini New Moon 2025: Minor Planet Report - The Evening Star Café