2010 RN221 and (458271) 2010 UM26

I have tried to link these two asteroids without success and also Peter Veres (MPC) has been so kind to check and he told me that no linkage can be done.

He added that "it might be worth investigating this case" to see if it is true that these objects have departed from each other.

If these objects are really different, something very strange might have occurred in year 2003.

 

Look at the result of a backward simulation that I tried:

Also using  JPL Horizons for the date 22-January-2003, look at the relative distance and velocity

(coherent with the simulation result):

Target body name: (2010 RN221)   

$$SOE

2452661.500000000 = A.D. 2003-Jan-22 00:00:00.0000 TDB 
 X =-8.920099855275528E+07 Y = 3.752091212286066E+08 Z =-1.906335678954402E+07
 VX=-1.836459849490381E+01 VY= 1.763251089208628E+00 VZ=-1.090280059553749E+00
 LT= 1.288015822532121E+03 RG= 3.861374293797964E+08 RR= 6.009551617298905E+00
$$EOE

Target body name: 458271 (2010 UM26) 
$$SOE
2452661.500000000 = A.D. 2003-Jan-22 00:00:00.0000 TDB 
 X =-8.920133310842243E+07 Y = 3.752083644498053E+08 Z =-1.906344797876614E+07
 VX=-1.836461372418546E+01 VY= 1.763243109436744E+00 VZ=-1.090279471456164E+00
 LT= 1.288013642446344E+03 RG= 3.861367758065227E+08 RR= 6.009570237326630E+00
$$EOE

Did these two objects separated from a common progenitor?

Best wishes,

Alessandro Odasso