Bianca (moon)
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- There is also an asteroid called 218 Bianca.
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Discovery
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| Discovered by | Bradford A. Smith / Voyager 2 |
| Discovery date | January 23, 1986 |
| Mean orbit radius | 59,165.550 ± 0.045 km[1] |
| Eccentricity | 0.00092 ± 0.000118[1] |
| Orbital period | 0.434578986 ± 0.000000022 d[1] |
| Inclination | 0.19308 ± 0.054° (to Uranus' equator)[1] |
| Satellite of | Uranus |
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Physical characteristics
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| Dimensions | 64 × 46 × 46 km[2] |
| Mean radius | 27 ± 2 km[2] |
| Surface area | ~8300 km²[3] |
| Volume | ~71,000 km³[3] |
| Mass | ~9.2×1016 kg[3] |
| Mean density | ~1.3 g/cm³ (assumed) |
| Equatorial surface gravity | ~0.0086 m/s2[3] |
| Escape velocity | ~0.022 km/s[3] |
| Rotation period | synchronous[2] |
| Axial tilt | zero[2] |
| Albedo | 0.08 ± 0.01 [4] |
| Temperature | ~64 K[3] |
Bianca (bee-aang'-kə, IPA: /biˈɑŋkə/) is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2 on 1986-01-23, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 9.[5] It was named after the sister of Katherine in Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew. It was named Peaseblossom by its discoverers after a fairy in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, however due to a nomenclature conflict between the USA and the USSR the name Bianca was quietly chosen by the IAU a few years after the moon's discovery.[1] It is also designated Uranus VIII.[6].
Bianca belongs to Portia Group of satellites, which also includes Cressida, Desdemona, Juliet, Portia, Rosalind, Cupid, Belinda and Perdita.[4] These satellites have similar orbits and photometric properties.[4] Unfortunately, other than its orbit,[1] radius of 27 km[2] and geometric albedo of 0.08[4] virtually nothing is known about it.
At the Voyager 2 images Bianca appears as an elongated object, the major axis pointing towards Uranus. The ratio of axises of the Bianca's prolate spheroid is 0.7 ± 0.2.[2] Its surface is grey in color.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e Jacobson, R.A. (1998). "The Orbits of the Inner Uranian Satellites From Hubble Space Telescope and Voyager2 Observations". The Astronomical Journal 115: 1195-1199. doi:.
- ^ a b c d e f g Karkoschka, Erich (2001). "Voyager's Eleventh Discovery of a Satellite of Uranus and Photometry and the First Size Measurements of Nine Satellites". Icarus 151: 69–77. doi:.
- ^ a b c d e f Calculated on the basis of other parameters
- ^ a b c d Karkoschka, Erich (2001). "Comprehensive Photometry of the Rings and 16 Satellites of Uranus with the Hubble Space Telescope". Icarus 151: 51–68. doi:.
- ^ Smith, B. A. (January 27, 1986). IAU Circular No. 4168. Retrieved on 2006-08-06.
- ^ Planet and Satellite Names and Discoverers. Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology (July 21, 2006). Retrieved on 2006-08-06.
[edit] External links
Bianca Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
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