CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) – Astronomers have spotted the farthest known object in our solar system – and they’ve nicknamed the pink cosmic body “Farout.”

The International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center announced the discovery Monday.

“Farout” (pronounced far-out) is about 120 astronomical units away – that’s 120 times the distance between Earth and the sun, or 11 billion miles. The previous record-holder was the dwarf planet Eris at 96 astronomical units.

The Carnegie Institution’s Scott Sheppard says the object is so far away and moving so slowly it will take a few years to determine its orbit. At that distance, it could take more than 1,000 years to orbit the sun.

The astronomers spied the dwarf planet in November using a telescope in Hawaii.

It’s an estimated 500 kilometers (310 miles) across.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.  PHOTO: AP