Lysithea (moon)

Lysithea (/lˈsɪθiə/ ly-SITH-ee-ə, /liˈsɪθiə/ li-SITH-ee-ə; Greek: Λυσιθέα) is a prograde non-spherical moon of Jupiter. It was found 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
Lysithea2.jpg
Discovery
Discovered byS. B. Nicholson
Discovery dateJuly 6, 1938[1]
Designations
AdjectivesLysithean
Orbital characteristics
Mean orbit radius
11,720,000 km[2]
Eccentricity0.11[2]
259.20 d (0.69 a)[2]
3.29 km/s
Inclination28.30° (to the ecliptic)
25.77° (to Jupiter's equator)[2]
Satellite ofJupiter
Physical characteristics
Mean radius
18 km[3]
~4100 km2
Volume~24,400 km3
Mass6.3×1016 kg
Mean density
2.6 g/cm3 (assumed)[3]
~0.013 m/s2 (0.001 g)
~0.022 km/s
Albedo0.04 (assumed)[3]
Temperature~124 K

Lysithea did not get 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 11,000,000 and 13,000,000 km from Jupiter at an inclination of about 28.3°.[2] Its orbital elements are as of January 2000. They are changing a lot due to Solar and planetary perturbations.

Lysithea (moon) Media

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Nicholson, S. B. (October 1938). "Two New Satellites of Jupiter". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. 50 (297): 292–293. Bibcode:1938PASP...50..292N. doi:10.1086/124963. S2CID 120216615.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Jacobson, R.A. (2000). "The orbits of outer Jovian satellites" (PDF). Astronomical Journal. 120 (5): 2679–2686. Bibcode:2000AJ....120.2679J. doi:10.1086/316817. S2CID 120372170.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Planetary Satellite Physical Parameters". JPL (Solar System Dynamics). Retrieved 2008-12-12.
  4. Marsden, B. G. (7 October 1974). "Satellites of Jupiter". IAUC Circular. 2846.
  5. Payne-Gaposchkin, Cecilia; Katherine Haramundanis (1970). Introduction to Astronomy. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. ISBN 0-134-78107-4.

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