Lysithea (moon)
![]() Lysithea in a 2MASS photograph | |
Discovery [1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by | Seth B. Nicholson |
Discovery site | Mt. Wilson Observatory |
Discovery date | 6 July 1938 |
Designations | |
Designation | Jupiter X |
Pronunciation | /laɪˈsɪθiə/[2][3] |
Named after | Λυσιθέα Lysithea |
Adjectives | Lysithean /laɪˈsɪθiən/[4] |
Orbital characteristics [5] | |
Epoch 27 April 2019 (JD 2458600.5) | |
Observation arc | 79.87 yr (29,171 days) |
0.0782144 AU (11,700,710 km) | |
Eccentricity | 0.1478734 |
+258.57 d | |
27.18992° | |
1° 23m 32.227s / day | |
Inclination | 26.29254° (to ecliptic) |
343.46495° | |
94.80010° | |
Satellite of | Jupiter |
Group | Himalia group |
Physical characteristics | |
Mean diameter | 42.2±0.7 km[6] |
12.78±0.10 h[7] | |
Albedo | 0.036±0.006[6] |
18.2[8] | |
Absolute magnitude (H) | 11.2[5] |
Lysithea /laɪˈsɪθiə/ 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.[9]
Lysithea did not receive its present name until 1975; before then, it was simply known as Jupiter X. It was sometimes called "Demeter"[10] 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°.[11] Its orbital elements are as of January 2000. They are continuously changing due to solar and planetary perturbations.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f1/Lysithea-WISE.gif/170px-Lysithea-WISE.gif)
Lysithea observed by the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) spacecraft in 2014
See also[]
- Irregular satellites
- Jupiter's moons in fiction
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b 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.
- ^ "Lysithea". Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House.
- ^ Cf. also 'Lysithous' in Noah Webster (1884) A Practical Dictionary of the English Language
- ^ Yenne (1987) The Atlas of the Solar System.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "M.P.C. 115890" (PDF). Minor Planet Circular. Minor Planet Center. 27 August 2019.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Grav, T.; Bauer, J. M.; Mainzer, A. K.; Masiero, J. R.; Nugent, C. R.; Cutri, R. M.; et al. (August 2015). "NEOWISE: Observations of the Irregular Satellites of Jupiter and Saturn" (PDF). The Astrophysical Journal. 809 (1): 9. Bibcode:2015ApJ...809....3G. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/809/1/3. S2CID 5834661. 3.
- ^ Luu, Jane (September 1991). "CCD photometry and spectroscopy of the outer Jovian satellites". Astronomical Journal. 102: 1213–1225. Bibcode:1991AJ....102.1213L. doi:10.1086/115949. ISSN 0004-6256.
- ^ Sheppard, Scott. "Scott S. Sheppard - Jupiter Moons". Department of Terrestrial Magnetism. Carnegie Institution for Science. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
- ^ Marsden, Brian G. (7 October 1975). "Satellites of Jupiter". International Astronomical Union.
- ^ Payne-Gaposchkin, Cecilia; Katherine Haramundanis (1970). Introduction to Astronomy. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. ISBN 0-13-478107-4.
- ^ 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.
External links[]
Categories:
- Himalia group
- Moons of Jupiter
- Irregular satellites
- Astronomical objects discovered in 1938