Lysithea (moon)

Lysithea
Discovery
Discovered by S. B. Nicholson
Discovery date July 6, 1938[1]
Designations
Adjectives Lysithean
Orbital characteristics
Mean orbit radius
 11,720,000 km[2]
Eccentricity 0.11[2]
259.20 d (0.69 a)[2]
3.29 km/s
Inclination 28.30° (to the ecliptic)
25.77° (to Jupiter's equator)[2]
Satellite of Jupiter
Physical characteristics
Mean radius
 18 km[3]
~4100 km²
Volume ~24,400 km³
Mass 6.3×1016 kg
Mean density
 2.6 g/cm³ (assumed)[3]
~0.013 m/s2 (0.001 g)
~0.022 km/s
Albedo 0.04 (assumed)[3]
Temperature ~124 K

    Lysithea (/laɪˈsɪθiə/ ly-SITH-ee-ə, /lɨˈsɪθiə/ li-SITH-ee-ə; Greek: Λυσιθέα) is a prograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Seth Barnes Nicholson in 1938 at Mount Wilson Observatory[1] and is named after the mythological Lysithea, daughter of Oceanus and one of Zeus' lovers.[4]

    Lysithea didn't receive its present name until 1975; before then, it was simply known as Jupiter X. It was sometimes called "Demeter"[5] from 1955 to 1975.

    It belongs to the Himalia group, five moons orbiting between 11 and 13 Gm from Jupiter at an inclination of about 28.3°.[2] Its orbital elements are as of January 2000. They are continuously changing due to solar and planetary perturbations.

    See also

    References

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Nicholson, S.B. (1938). "Two New Satellites of Jupiter". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 50: 292–293. Bibcode:1938PASP...50..292N. doi:10.1086/124963.
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Jacobson, R.A. (2000). "The orbits of outer Jovian satellites". Astronomical Journal 120 (5): 2679–2686. Bibcode:2000AJ....120.2679J. doi:10.1086/316817.
    3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Planetary Satellite Physical Parameters". JPL (Solar System Dynamics). 2008-10-24. Retrieved 2008-12-12.
    4. ↑ Marsden, B. G. (1974-10-07). "Satellites of Jupiter". IAUC Circular 2846.
    5. ↑ Payne-Gaposchkin, Cecilia; Katherine Haramundanis (1970). Introduction to Astronomy. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. ISBN 0-13-478107-4.

    External links