Desdemona (moon)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- There is also a minor planet called 666 Desdemona.
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Discovery
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| Discovered by | Stephen P. Synnott / Voyager 2 |
| Discovery date | January 13, 1986 |
| Mean orbit radius | 62,658.364 ± 0.047 km[1] |
| Eccentricity | 0.00013 ± 0.000070[1] |
| Orbital period | 0.473649597 ± 0.000000014 d[1] |
| Inclination | 0.11252 ± 0.037° (to Uranus' equator)[1] |
| Satellite of | Uranus |
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Physical characteristics
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| Dimensions | 90 × 54 × 54 km[2] |
| Mean radius | 34 ± 4 km[2] |
| Surface area | ~14,500 km²[3] |
| Volume | ~164,000 km³[3] |
| Mass | ~2.3×1017 kg[3] |
| Mean density | ~1.3 g/cm³ assumed |
| Equatorial surface gravity | ~0.011 m/s2[3] |
| Escape velocity | ~0.027 km/s[3] |
| Rotation period | synchronous[2] |
| Axial tilt | zero[2] |
| Albedo | 0.08 ± 0.01[4] |
| Temperature | ~64 K[3] |
Desdemona (dez'-də-moe'-nə, IPA: /ˌdɛzdɨˈmɔʊnə/) is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2 on 1986-01-13, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 6.[5] Desdemona is named after the wife of Othello in William Shakespeare's play Othello. It is also designated Uranus X.[6]
Desdemona belongs to Portia Group of satellites, which also includes Bianca, Cressida, 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 34 km[2] and geometric albedo of 0.08[4] virtually nothing is known about it.
At the Voyager 2 images Desdemona appears as an elongated object, the major axis pointing towards Uranus. The ratio of axes of the Desdemona's prolate spheroid is 0.6 ± 0.3.[2] Its surface is grey in color.[2]
Desdemona may collide with one of its neighboring moons Cressida or Juliet within the next 100 million years.[7]
[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 16 1986). IAU Circular No. 4164. 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.
- ^ Duncan, Martin J.; Jack J. Lissauer (1997). "Orbital Stability of the Uranian Satellite System". Icarus 125 (1): 1-12. doi:.
[edit] External links
Desdemona Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
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