This page uses the smart quotes in the title and meta tags
magnitude 18.5 object located in the constellation Ophiuchus, was announced on October 7, 2002, at a meeting of the American Astronomical Society. The earliest prediscovery image proved to be a May 25, 1954 plate from Palomar Observatory. It may qualify as a dwarf planet, given its size inferred from direct observation by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The planetoid's name follows International Astronomical Union rules by naming trans-Neptunian objects after deities associated with creation myths (see planetary nomenclature). "Quaoar" is the name of a creation deity of the Native American Tongva people, native to the area around Los Angeles, where the discovery was made. The IAU approved the name Quaoar, making it the official name; it also has the provisional designation 2002 LM60. The "memorable" number 50000 is a witness to the exciting race to discover a Pluto-sized object; Quaoar’s discovery followed that of 20000 Varuna and was in turn followed by bigger discoveries (see below). The efforts were finally rewarded with the discovery of an object bigger than Pluto, namely Eris.