The solar system has a new winner in the moon department
Twenty new moons have been found around Saturn, giving the ringed planet a total of 82 and that beats Jupiter and its 79 moons.
“It was fun to find that Saturn is the true moon king,” said astronomer Scott Sheppard of the Carnegie Institution for Science.
The moons are all similar in size, spanning about five kilometers across. But 17 of the 20 have a retrograde orbit of Saturn, meaning they essentially orbit backwards from the planet and other moons.
The moons were discovered using the Subaru Telescope on Hawaii’s Mauna Kea.
Studying the orbits of these moons can reveal their origins, as well as information about the conditions surrounding Saturn at the time of its formation.
Given their small size and the fact they're grouped in a similar manner to the outer moons of Jupiter, it's likely they are the remnants of a larger moon that orbited Saturn and was destroyed.
Do you want to give a name to the newfound moons ?
Tweet your suggested moon name to @SaturnLunacy and tell why you picked it. Photos, artwork, and videos are strongly encouraged. Don't forget to include the hashtag #NameSaturnsMoons.
The General naming Rules:
Two of the newly discovered prograde moons fit into a group of outer moons with inclinations of about 46 degrees called the Inuit group. All name submissions for this group must be giants from Inuit mythology.
Seventeen of the newly discovered moons are retrograde moons in the Norse group. All name submissions for this group must be giants from Norse mythology.
One of the newly discovered moons orbits in the prograde direction and has an inclination near 36 degrees, which is similar to those in the Gallic group, although it is much farther away from Saturn than any other prograde moons. It must be named after a giant from Gallic mythology.
Phedias Hadjicharalambous.
Cyprus Astronomy Organisation
