What are the distinguishing features of the Kuiper Belt objects?

The Kuiper Belt is a region of the solar system beyond the orbit of Neptune that is home to a large number of small icy bodies. These objects are believed to be remnants from the early solar system and are of great interest to astronomers studying the formation and evolution of our solar system.

The distinguishing features of Kuiper Belt objects include their composition, size, and distance from the Sun. Kuiper Belt objects are made primarily of rock and ice, and range in size from a few kilometers to several hundred kilometers in diameter. They are located in a region of the solar system that is roughly 30 to 50 astronomical units from the Sun, and have highly eccentric orbits that can take them as far as 100 astronomical units from the Sun.

Another important feature of Kuiper Belt objects is that they are believed to be the source of short-period comets, which are comets that have orbital periods of less than 200 years. When a Kuiper Belt object's orbit is perturbed by the gravity of a nearby planet, it can be sent into the inner solar system where it becomes a short-period comet.