* Astronomy

Lunar swirls are strange markings on the Moon that resemble swirling cream in coffee. They seem to be curly-cues of pale moondust, twisting and turning across the lunar surface for dozens of miles. Each swirl is utterly flat and protected by a magnetic field. One of the swirls, [url=http://www...

Saturn's chaotically tumbling moon Hyperion was captured by the Cassini spacecraft. Seen at the top is a 130-kilometer-wide crater...

This image was taken on August 02, 2005 and received on Earth August 02, 2005 by the Cassini spacecraft. The camera was pointing toward Mimas that was approximately 128,703 kilometres away. The image was taken using the P0 and GRN filters. [img]http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimed...

This image was taken by the Cassini spacecraft on July 02, 2005, and received on Earth July 02, 2005. [url=http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/images/raw/casJPGFullS12/N000...

This image was taken with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on March 19, 2005, through spectral filters sensitive to wavelengths of infrared light cantered at 752 nanometres. The view was acquired at a distance of approximately 1.4 million kilometres from Iapetus. [img]http://p...

The Cassini mission has made the most detailed ever study ever Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, and its atmosphere. The results could lead to a better understanding of the conditions that existed on the young Earth. Titan...

This spot was first noticed last year by the robot Cassini spacecraft now orbiting Saturn. Expand Cas...

This close-up look at Saturn's moon Janus reveals spots on the moon's surface which may be dark material exposed by impacts. If the dark markings within bright terrain are indeed impact features, then Janus' surface represents a contrast with that of Saturn's moon Phoebe, whe...

This unmagnified view of Saturn's moon Dione shows the moon's bright, wispy terrain, along with several large impact craters. Two of the craters have central peaks. Dione is 1,118 kilometres across. North o...

Saturns little moon Atlas orbits (137,640km)between the outer edge of the A ring and the twisted F ring. [url=http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/jpeg...

This infrared colour image of Enceladus was obtained by the Cassini visual infrared mapping spectrometer on March 9, 2005, when the Cassini spacecraft was 9,145 kilometres away from Enceladus. Enceladus shows substantial differences in composition or, more likely, particle size...

Title: Loki, Io: New groundbased observations and a model describing the change from periodic overturn Authors: Julie A. Rathbun, John R. Spencer Loki Patera is the most powerful volcano in the solar system. Researchers have obtained measurements of Loki's 3.5...

The shepherd moon, Pandora, is seen here alongside the narrow F ring that it helps maintain. Pandora is 84 kilometres across. Cassini obtained this view from about four degrees above the ringplane...

Ganymede is Jupiter's largest moon, and the largest moon in the entire solar system; it is larger in diameter than Mercury but only about half its mass. Ganymede is one of four planetary satellites of Jupiter which can be seen with the naked eye with good eyesight, a clear night and without the polluti...

When a spacecraft was launched to search for water and life on Mars on Aug. 12, some scientists also cast their eyes on the more remote Europa, one of Jupiter's moons, with the hope that the ice-covered sa...

(expand) (1024 x 1024) This image was taken on May 22, 2005 by the Cassini spacecraft and received on Earth May 22, 2005. The camera was pointing...

The New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) captured these two images of Jupiter's outermost large moon, Callisto, as the spacecraft flew past Jupiter in late February. New Horizons' closest approach distanc...

Spirit has imaged Phobos and Deimos the two Martian moons. The robot is currently assessing weath...

S/2005 S 1 = XXXV Daphnis Daphnis was discovered on May 1, 2005 by the Cassini Imaging Science Team. The name comes from the shepherd, pipes player, and pastoral poet in Greek mythology. Daphnis was the son of Hermes, brother of Pan, and descendant of the Titans. [img]http://st...

Saturn's moons Helene and Polydeuces are Trojan moons of Dione, orbiting about 60 degrees ahead of and behind, the much larger moon. Trojan moons are found near gravitationally stable points ahead or behind a larger moon. Polydeuces (S/2004 S5) was discovere...

This image of Pan was taken by the Cassini spaceprobe on June 30, 2006, when it was approximately 302,235 kilometres away. The image was taken using the CL1 and CL2 filters. Pan, (S/1981 S 13) is about 25 kilometres across (35 × 35 × 23 km), and orbits in the Encke gap. It is responsible for keepi...

This image shows Polydeuces, a moon that was discovered by the Cassini spacecraft. It is only 3 kilometres across. Polydeuces is co-orbital (orbits Saturn at the same distance) with [url=http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=58381&p=3&topicID=3594320&subForumID=163878...

This image was taken by the Cassini spaceprobe on April 14, 2006 and received on Earth April 15, 2006. The camera was pointing toward Pallene. [url=http://static.flickr.com/1/128912956_7161424104_o.jpg]Ex...

Scientists have concluded that Saturn's moon Phoebe originated in the outer solar system, and is similar to Pluto and other members of the Kuiper Belt. "Cassini is showing us that Phoebe is quite different from Saturn's other icy satellites, not just in its orbit but in the relative proportio...

This is Cassini's best look yet at the Trojan moon Telesto (24 kilometres across), which orbits Saturn about 60 degrees ahead of the much larger Tethys (1,071 kilometres across). Calypso (22 kilometres across) is the other Tethys Trojan, and trail...

According to team of Cassini scientists, Saturn's inner moons, such as Calypso, Telesto, Pan, Atlas, Janus, Epimetheus, Pandora and Prometheus, may not be solid chunks of ice, but rather made up of "rubble...

This colour image provides the best look yet at Saturn's moon Calypso, a Trojan (trailing moon) of the larger moon Tethys. Calypso trail...

Astronomers using the Keck II Laser Telescope in Hawaii, have found that the two Trojan asteroids, 617 Patroclus and its companion, Menoetius, have a density of only 0.8 grams per cubic centimetre— much less dense than normal asteroids should be. This leads the researchers to th...

The Cassini spacecraft captured this grouping of three moons --Dione, Tethys and Pandora-- near the rings, on Sept. 22, 2005, at a distance of approximately 1.2 million kilometres from Saturn. [url=http://photo...

Several distinct craters on Saturn's moon Hyperion can be seen here, as well as a protruding feature, perhaps a mountain, near the centre. Hyperion is 266 kilometres (165 miles) across. The image was taken in visible...

Saturn's moon's Mimas, Dione and Rhea, (left to right) on the far side of Saturn's nearly edge-on rings. Expand The ima...

Amalthea was discovered by the exceptionally keen eyesight of American astronomer Edward Barnard in 1892 using the 36 inch (91 cm) refractor telescope at Lick Observatory. This was the first discovery of a Jovian moon since Galileo's discovery in 1610. Barnard's dis...

Constraints on the Orbital Evolution of Triton Authors: Matija Cuk, Brett J. Gladman We present simulations of Triton's post-capture orbit that confirm the importance of Kozai-type oscillations in its orbital elements. In the context of the tidal orbital evolution model, these variation...

The Moon's soil is impregnated with nitrogen that came from Earth's atmosphere, according to Japanese scientists. The researchers, giving a new interpretative spin on analysis of lunar soil brought home by the Apollo missions, believe that the nitrogen escaped from Earth's upper atmosphere...

Russia is planning to mine a rare fuel on the Moon by 2020 with a permanent base and a heavy-cargo transport link. "We are planning to build a permanent base on the Moon by 2015 and by 2020 we can begin the industrial-scale delivery ... of the rare isotope Helium-3" - Nikolai Sevastyanov, he...

Cassini captured this view of Epimetheus on May 20, 2005. The moon's lumpy, irregular topography can be seen here, along with several impact craters. Epimetheus is 116 kilometres across. The image was t...

University of Arizona and Japanese scientists are convinced that evidence at last settles decades-long arguments about what objects bombarded the early inner solar system in a cataclysm 3.9 billion years ago. Ancient main belt asteroids identical in size to present-day asteroids in the Ma...

In September 1974, Jupiter was in opposition, near its closest point to Earth. Astronomer Charlie Kowal was on Mount Palomar, photographing the sky around Jupiter with a 48-inch telescope on three successive nights. Since the telescope had been set to track Jupiter in its slow slide across the bac...

Silicon Tetrafluoride on Io Authors: Laura Schaefer, Bruce Fegley Jr Silicon tetrafluoride (SiF4) is observed in terrestrial volcanic gases and is predicted to be the major F - bearing species in low temperature volcanic gases on Io. SiF4 gas is also a pot...

Without knowing the conditions of early Earth, researchers havent been able to answer some fundamental questions of earth science: when the Earths magnetic field originated, how the Earths relationship with the moon changes over time, and when oxygen first appeared in the atmosphere (and, inci...

Thanks to measurements by the D-CIXS X-ray spectrometer, ESA`s SMART-1 spacecraft has made the first ever unambiguous remote-sensing detection of calcium on the Moon. SMART-1 (Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology) was launched on 27 September 2003,...

The Moon Expand (66kb, 1024 x 768) Time 5:20 GMT, 08 Sept, 07 Exposure: 10 sec

When astronauts land on the Moon in the not too distant future, it's possible they will be visiting an outpost where they can pick up some fuel and a refreshing container of liquid. That outpost won't be offering the 64-ounce Big Gulp soft drinks that you find at many of the convenience stores across th...

NASA has given the award of launch services for the LRO mission to Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services Inc. The spacecraft is scheduled for launch aboard an Atlas V 401 rocket at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station during a launch window that opens on Oct. 31, 2008. Once launched, payload instru...

Titania est le principal satellite d'Uranus. Une équipe d'astronomes de l'Observatoire de Paris associée à plus d'une centaines d'observateurs amateurs et professionnels, dans une campagne inédite à cette échelle, a pu établir depuis le sol, avec des instruments de taille modeste (de l'ordre...

Why explore the moons of our Solar System? Click to Play | View Details As of October 2008, there are 327 formally classified moons, including 166 moons orbiting six of the eight "full-size" planets (Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune), while six orbit the "dwarf&q...

Title: Aegaeon (Saturn LIII), a G-ring object Authors: M.M. Hedman, N.J. Cooper, C.D.Murray, K. Beurle, M.W. Evans, M.S. Tiscareno, J. A. Burns Aegaeon (Saturn LIII, S/2008 S1) is a small satellite of Saturn that orbits within a bright arc of material near the inner edge of Saturn's G ring. This obj...

Recent Cassini spacecraft images show arcs of material co-orbiting with the Saturnian moons Anthe and Methone. Expand (132kb, 591 x 551) Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Cassini imaging scientists believe t...

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has approved the name Herse for the moon Jupiter L discovered on the 27th February, 2003 by B. Gladman, J. Kavelaars, J.-M. Petit, and L. Allen at the Mauna Kea observatory. Herse is a figure in Greek mythology, daughter of Cecrops (or, according to Paus...

Title: Planetesimals and Satellitesimals: Formation of the Satellite Systems Authors: Ignacio Mosqueira, Paul R. Estrada, Diego Turrini The origin of the regular satellites ties directly to planetary formation in that the satellites form in gas and dust disks around the giant planets and may b...

The Cassini spacecraft captured an image of a small object in the outer portion of Saturn's B ring casting a shadow on the rings as Saturn approaches its August 2009 equinox. This new moonlet, situated about 480 kilometres, inward from the outer edge of the B ring, was found by detection of its shadow w...

Astronomers have discovered 12 new moons orbiting Saturn, bringing its number of natural satellites to 46. The moons are small, irregular bodies - probably only about 3-7km in size (assuming they have a surface albedo of 4%) - that are far from Saturn and take about two years to complete one o...

Expand (10kb, 1024 x 768) Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute This image of Methone was taken by the Cassini spaceprobe on the 1st February, 2010. The image was taken using the CL1 and CL3 filters.

Erriapus, also Saturn XXVIII, is a prograde irregular satellite of Saturn. Read more Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute This image of Erriapus was taken by the Cassini spaceprobe on the 4th February, 2010. The image wa...

Lysithea is a prograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Seth Barnes Nicholson on the 6th July, 1938 at Mount Wilson Observatory and is named after the mythological Lysithea, daughter of Oceanus and one of Zeus' lovers. [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysithea_%28mo...

Callirrhoe, also known as Jupiter XVII, is one of Jupiter's outermost named natural satellites. It is an irregular moon that orbits in a retrograde direction. Callirrhoe was imaged by Spacewatch at Kitt Peak National Observatory from October 6th through November 4th, 1999 and originally des...

Bianca is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2 on January 23, 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 9. It was named after the sister of Katherine in Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew. [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bianca...

Miranda is the smallest and innermost of Uranus' five major moons. It was discovered by Gerard Kuiper on February 16, 1948 at McDonald Observatory. It was named after Miranda from William Shakespeare's play The Tempest by Kuiper in his report of the discovery. [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

NASA's Hubble Discovers Another Moon Around Pluto These two images, taken about a week apart by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, show four moons orbiting the distant, icy dwarf planet Pluto. The green circle in both snapshots marks the newly discovered moon, temporarily dubbed P4, found by Hubble i...

Despina, also known as Neptune V, is the third closest inner satellite of Neptune. It is named after Despoina, a nymph who was a daughter of Poseidon and Demeter. Despina was discovered in late July 1989 from the images taken by the Voyager 2 probe. It was given the temporary designation S/1989 N 3. The...

The martian moon Deimos was discovered by Astronomer Asaph Hall, Sr. at the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C on August 12, 1877, at about 07:48 UTC. Read more

Uranian moons: Cupid and Mab were discovered by Mark R. Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer using the Hubble Space Telescope in 2003. Mab or Uranus XXVI (26), is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered by Mark R. Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer in August 25, 2003, using the Hubble Space Telescope. It...

Uranian moons: Cupid and Mab were discovered by Mark R. Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer using the Hubble Space Telescope in 2003. Cupid is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered by Mark Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer in August 25, 2003, using the Hubble Space Telescope. It was named after a cha...

Ananke is a retrograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Seth Barnes Nicholson at Mount Wilson Observatory on the 28th September, 1951 and is named after the mythological Ananke, the personification of Necessity, and the mother of the Moirae by Zeus. The adjectival form of the...

Himalia is the largest irregular satellite of Jupiter, the sixth largest overall in size, and the fifth largest in mass. (Only the four Galilean moons of Jupiter have greater mass.) It was discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine at the Lick Observatory on 3 December 1904 and is named after the nymph Him...

Elara is a prograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine at Lick Observatory in 1905. It is the eighth largest moon of Jupiter and is named after the mother by Zeus of the giant Tityus. Read more...

Cressida is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2 on 9 January 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 3. It was named after the Trojan daughter of Calchas, a tragic heroine who appears in William Shakespeare's play Troilus and Cressida (as w...

Miranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania & Oberon Spoiler

Nix is a natural satellite of Pluto. It was discovered along with Hydra in June 2005, and is to be visited along with Pluto by the New Horizons mission in July 2015. The formal name of Pluto's moon "Nix", from the Greek goddess of darkness and night, and mother of Charon, was announced on June...

Hydra is the second outermost known natural satellite of Pluto. It was discovered along with Nix in June 2005, and is to be visited along with Pluto by the New Horizons mission in July 2015. The name Hydra was announced on June 21, 2006, in IAU Circular 8723, along with the formal designation Pluto III....

The Most Cruel Death of Cupid and Belinda A pair of star-cross'd lovers orbits Uranus, and when they rush to meet their fate, the duo could leave the cosmic stage littered with more bodies than the final scene of Hamlet. But the deaths of the moons Cupid and Belinda might not bring down the curtain on U...

	Forum	Replies	Views	Last Post
moon Lunar Earth moon The Moon ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 15 ) (Preview)	Solar System	148	17965	Nov 9 22:10 2015 by Blobrana
Lunar swirls are strange markings on the Moon that resemble swirling cream in coffee. They seem to be curly-cues of pale moondust, twisting and turning across the lunar surface for dozens of miles. Each swirl is utterly flat and protected by a magnetic field. One of the swirls, [url=http://www...
moon Hyperion Hyperion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ) (Preview)	Solar System	41	8631	Jun 3 09:23 2015 by Blobrana
Saturn's chaotically tumbling moon Hyperion was captured by the Cassini spacecraft. Seen at the top is a 130-kilometer-wide crater...
moon Mimas ( 1 2 3 4 ) (Preview)	Solar System	37	8557	Oct 16 19:03 2014 by Blobrana
This image was taken on August 02, 2005 and received on Earth August 02, 2005 by the Cassini spacecraft. The camera was pointing toward Mimas that was approximately 128,703 kilometres away. The image was taken using the P0 and GRN filters. [img]http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimed...
moon Prometheus ( 1 2 3 ) (Preview)	Solar System	24	7074	Feb 21 05:09 2010 by Blobrana
This image was taken by the Cassini spacecraft on July 02, 2005, and received on Earth July 02, 2005. [url=http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/images/raw/casJPGFullS12/N000...
moon Iapetus ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 8 ) (Preview)	Solar System	72	14170	Jul 29 21:58 2012 by Blobrana
This image was taken with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on March 19, 2005, through spectral filters sensitive to wavelengths of infrared light cantered at 752 nanometres. The view was acquired at a distance of approximately 1.4 million kilometres from Iapetus. [img]http://p...
moon Titan Saturn Titan ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 49 ) (Preview)	Solar System	482	42329	May 8 11:13 2017 by Blobrana
The Cassini mission has made the most detailed ever study ever Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, and its atmosphere. The results could lead to a better understanding of the conditions that existed on the young Earth. Titan...
moon Rhea Spot ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 11 ) (Preview)	Solar System	109	15687	Mar 11 20:43 2013 by Blobrana
This spot was first noticed last year by the robot Cassini spacecraft now orbiting Saturn. Expand Cas...
moon Janus ( 1 2 3 ) (Preview)	Solar System	25	6665	Mar 29 13:55 2012 by Blobrana
This close-up look at Saturn's moon Janus reveals spots on the moon's surface which may be dark material exposed by impacts. If the dark markings within bright terrain are indeed impact features, then Janus' surface represents a contrast with that of Saturn's moon Phoebe, whe...
moon Dione ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 8 ) (Preview)	Solar System	74	11876	Sep 29 16:45 2016 by Blobrana
This unmagnified view of Saturn's moon Dione shows the moon's bright, wispy terrain, along with several large impact craters. Two of the craters have central peaks. Dione is 1,118 kilometres across. North o...
moon Atlas, Moon (Preview)	Solar System	8	4226	Dec 7 12:11 2007 by Blobrana
Saturns little moon Atlas orbits (137,640km)between the outer edge of the A ring and the twisted F ring. [url=http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/jpeg...
moon Enceladus ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 23 ) (Preview)	Solar System	224	26159	Jun 29 12:15 2017 by Blobrana
This infrared colour image of Enceladus was obtained by the Cassini visual infrared mapping spectrometer on March 9, 2005, when the Cassini spacecraft was 9,145 kilometres away from Enceladus. Enceladus shows substantial differences in composition or, more likely, particle size...
moon Io IO ( 1 2 3 4 ) (Preview)	Solar System	38	7584	May 10 22:25 2017 by Blobrana
Title: Loki, Io: New groundbased observations and a model describing the change from periodic overturn Authors: Julie A. Rathbun, John R. Spencer Loki Patera is the most powerful volcano in the solar system. Researchers have obtained measurements of Loki's 3.5...
moon Pandora (Preview)	Solar System	7	3440	Jan 26 03:33 2010 by Blobrana
The shepherd moon, Pandora, is seen here alongside the narrow F ring that it helps maintain. Pandora is 84 kilometres across. Cassini obtained this view from about four degrees above the ringplane...
moon Ganymede Ganymede ( 1 2 ) (Preview)	Solar System	13	3427	Mar 12 18:27 2015 by Blobrana
Ganymede is Jupiter's largest moon, and the largest moon in the entire solar system; it is larger in diameter than Mercury but only about half its mass. Ganymede is one of four planetary satellites of Jupiter which can be seen with the naked eye with good eyesight, a clear night and without the polluti...
moon Europa Europa ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 6 ) (Preview)	Solar System	50	7772	Apr 17 12:49 2017 by Blobrana
When a spacecraft was launched to search for water and life on Mars on Aug. 12, some scientists also cast their eyes on the more remote Europa, one of Jupiter's moons, with the hope that the ice-covered sa...
moon Tethys Tethys ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 7 ) (Preview)	Solar System	64	14285	Jul 29 16:25 2015 by Blobrana
(expand) (1024 x 1024) This image was taken on May 22, 2005 by the Cassini spacecraft and received on Earth May 22, 2005. The camera was pointing...
moon Callisto (Preview)	Solar System	2	1130	Jan 24 19:15 2010 by Blobrana
The New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) captured these two images of Jupiter's outermost large moon, Callisto, as the spacecraft flew past Jupiter in late February. New Horizons' closest approach distanc...
moon Mars Phobos and Deimos ( 1 2 3 4 5 ) (Preview)	Solar System	47	12886	Mar 20 05:08 2015 by Blobrana
Spirit has imaged Phobos and Deimos the two Martian moons. The robot is currently assessing weath...
moon Daphnis (Preview)	Solar System	8	3683	Jul 7 09:43 2010 by Blobrana
S/2005 S 1 = XXXV Daphnis Daphnis was discovered on May 1, 2005 by the Cassini Imaging Science Team. The name comes from the shepherd, pipes player, and pastoral poet in Greek mythology. Daphnis was the son of Hermes, brother of Pan, and descendant of the Titans. [img]http://st...
moon Helene ( 1 2 ) (Preview)	Solar System	14	5125	Aug 18 19:36 2011 by Blobrana
Saturn's moons Helene and Polydeuces are Trojan moons of Dione, orbiting about 60 degrees ahead of and behind, the much larger moon. Trojan moons are found near gravitationally stable points ahead or behind a larger moon. Polydeuces (S/2004 S5) was discovere...
moon Pan_Moon (Preview)	Solar System	3	1511	Jul 3 21:54 2007 by Blobrana
This image of Pan was taken by the Cassini spaceprobe on June 30, 2006, when it was approximately 302,235 kilometres away. The image was taken using the CL1 and CL2 filters. Pan, (S/1981 S 13) is about 25 kilometres across (35 × 35 × 23 km), and orbits in the Encke gap. It is responsible for keepi...
moon Polydeuces (Preview)	Solar System	0	1819	Jun 29 00:07 2006 by Blobrana
This image shows Polydeuces, a moon that was discovered by the Cassini spacecraft. It is only 3 kilometres across. Polydeuces is co-orbital (orbits Saturn at the same distance) with [url=http://www.activeboard.com/forum.spark?forumID=58381&p=3&topicID=3594320&subForumID=163878...
moon Pallene (Preview)	Solar System	1	2000	Oct 22 21:07 2007 by Blobrana
This image was taken by the Cassini spaceprobe on April 14, 2006 and received on Earth April 15, 2006. The camera was pointing toward Pallene. [url=http://static.flickr.com/1/128912956_7161424104_o.jpg]Ex...
moon Phoebe ( 1 2 ) (Preview)	Solar System	13	5749	Mar 4 15:47 2013 by Blobrana
Scientists have concluded that Saturn's moon Phoebe originated in the outer solar system, and is similar to Pluto and other members of the Kuiper Belt. "Cassini is showing us that Phoebe is quite different from Saturn's other icy satellites, not just in its orbit but in the relative proportio...
moon Telesto (Preview)	Solar System	6	2493	Apr 7 11:33 2014 by Blobrana
This is Cassini's best look yet at the Trojan moon Telesto (24 kilometres across), which orbits Saturn about 60 degrees ahead of the much larger Tethys (1,071 kilometres across). Calypso (22 kilometres across) is the other Tethys Trojan, and trail...
moon Saturn's inner moons (Preview)	Solar System	1	1162	Sep 16 01:58 2011 by Blobrana
According to team of Cassini scientists, Saturn's inner moons, such as Calypso, Telesto, Pan, Atlas, Janus, Epimetheus, Pandora and Prometheus, may not be solid chunks of ice, but rather made up of "rubble...
moon Calypso (Preview)	Solar System	3	2085	Mar 13 00:01 2012 by Blobrana
This colour image provides the best look yet at Saturn's moon Calypso, a Trojan (trailing moon) of the larger moon Tethys. Calypso trail...
moon Patroclus and Menoetius (Preview)	Solar System	2	1694	Feb 4 22:26 2006 by Blobrana
Astronomers using the Keck II Laser Telescope in Hawaii, have found that the two Trojan asteroids, 617 Patroclus and its companion, Menoetius, have a density of only 0.8 grams per cubic centimetre— much less dense than normal asteroids should be. This leads the researchers to th...
moon Dione, Tethys and Pandora (Preview)	Solar System	0	1358	Nov 10 23:18 2005 by Blobrana
The Cassini spacecraft captured this grouping of three moons --Dione, Tethys and Pandora-- near the rings, on Sept. 22, 2005, at a distance of approximately 1.2 million kilometres from Saturn. [url=http://photo...
moon Hyperion Hyperion (Preview)	Astronomy News	0	1279	May 6 15:59 2005 by Blobrana
Several distinct craters on Saturn's moon Hyperion can be seen here, as well as a protruding feature, perhaps a mountain, near the centre. Hyperion is 266 kilometres (165 miles) across. The image was taken in visible...
moon Mimas, Dione and Rhea (Preview)	Astronomy News	2	1409	Jul 4 20:53 2005 by Blobrana
Saturn's moon's Mimas, Dione and Rhea, (left to right) on the far side of Saturn's nearly edge-on rings. Expand The ima...
moon Amalthea (Preview)	Astronomy News	2	1930	Sep 8 22:49 2012 by Blobrana
Amalthea was discovered by the exceptionally keen eyesight of American astronomer Edward Barnard in 1892 using the 36 inch (91 cm) refractor telescope at Lick Observatory. This was the first discovery of a Jovian moon since Galileo's discovery in 1610. Barnard's dis...
moon Neptune Triton ( 1 2 ) (Preview)	Astronomy News	13	3998	Aug 22 05:15 2014 by Blobrana
Constraints on the Orbital Evolution of Triton Authors: Matija Cuk, Brett J. Gladman We present simulations of Triton's post-capture orbit that confirm the importance of Kozai-type oscillations in its orbital elements. In the context of the tidal orbital evolution model, these variation...
Moon Lunar Moon soil ( 1 2 3 4 ) (Preview)	Astronomy News	37	10355	May 3 21:32 2017 by Blobrana
The Moon's soil is impregnated with nitrogen that came from Earth's atmosphere, according to Japanese scientists. The researchers, giving a new interpretative spin on analysis of lunar soil brought home by the Apollo missions, believe that the nitrogen escaped from Earth's upper atmosphere...
moon Helium Moon mine (Preview)	Solar System	5	1727	Jan 2 11:26 2012 by Blobrana
Russia is planning to mine a rare fuel on the Moon by 2020 with a permanent base and a heavy-cargo transport link. "We are planning to build a permanent base on the Moon by 2015 and by 2020 we can begin the industrial-scale delivery ... of the rare isotope Helium-3" - Nikolai Sevastyanov, he...
moon Epimetheus ( 1 2 ) (Preview)	Solar System	10	3644	Dec 18 00:01 2012 by Blobrana
Cassini captured this view of Epimetheus on May 20, 2005. The moon's lumpy, irregular topography can be seen here, along with several impact craters. Epimetheus is 116 kilometres across. The image was t...
Moon Lunar impact Late Heavy Bombardment ( 1 2 3 4 ) (Preview)	Astronomy News	30	8021	Apr 2 22:39 2013 by Blobrana
University of Arizona and Japanese scientists are convinced that evidence at last settles decades-long arguments about what objects bombarded the early inner solar system in a cataclysm 3.9 billion years ago. Ancient main belt asteroids identical in size to present-day asteroids in the Ma...
moon Themisto (Preview)	Solar System	0	1005	May 21 11:44 2006 by Blobrana
In September 1974, Jupiter was in opposition, near its closest point to Earth. Astronomer Charlie Kowal was on Mount Palomar, photographing the sky around Jupiter with a 48-inch telescope on three successive nights. Since the telescope had been set to track Jupiter in its slow slide across the bac...
Moon Io Silicon Tetrafluoride on Io (Preview)	General news	0	1191	Jun 9 15:37 2005 by Blobrana
Silicon Tetrafluoride on Io Authors: Laura Schaefer, Bruce Fegley Jr Silicon tetrafluoride (SiF4) is observed in terrestrial volcanic gases and is predicted to be the major F - bearing species in low temperature volcanic gases on Io. SiF4 gas is also a pot...
moon Lunar Moon geology ( 1 2 ) (Preview)	Astronomy News	16	3722	May 17 19:33 2012 by Blobrana
Without knowing the conditions of early Earth, researchers havent been able to answer some fundamental questions of earth science: when the Earths magnetic field originated, how the Earths relationship with the moon changes over time, and when oxygen first appeared in the atmosphere (and, inci...
moon SMART-1 ( 1 2 3 4 ) (Preview)	Mission News	38	9765	Dec 6 06:39 2012 by Blobrana
Thanks to measurements by the D-CIXS X-ray spectrometer, ESA`s SMART-1 spacecraft has made the first ever unambiguous remote-sensing detection of calcium on the Moon. SMART-1 (Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology) was launched on 27 September 2003,...
Luna moon Lunar The Moon ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 8 ) (Preview)	Observations	72	10461	Apr 28 20:38 2012 by Blobrana
The Moon Expand (66kb, 1024 x 768) Time 5:20 GMT, 08 Sept, 07 Exposure: 10 sec
Moon Lunar Lunar water ( 1 2 3 4 ) (Preview)	General news	34	6925	Feb 17 04:47 2015 by Blobrana
When astronauts land on the Moon in the not too distant future, it's possible they will be visiting an outpost where they can pick up some fuel and a refreshing container of liquid. That outpost won't be offering the 64-ounce Big Gulp soft drinks that you find at many of the convenience stores across th...
Glory satellite moon Lunar Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 14 ) (Preview)	Mission News	135	15571	Sep 24 08:49 2015 by Blobrana
NASA has given the award of launch services for the LRO mission to Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services Inc. The spacecraft is scheduled for launch aboard an Atlas V 401 rocket at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station during a launch window that opens on Oct. 31, 2008. Once launched, payload instru...
Moon Uranus Titania (Preview)	Uranus	2	1721	Sep 7 19:41 2013 by Blobrana
Titania est le principal satellite d'Uranus. Une équipe d'astronomes de l'Observatoire de Paris associée à plus d'une centaines d'observateurs amateurs et professionnels, dans une campagne inédite à cette échelle, a pu établir depuis le sol, avec des instruments de taille modeste (de l'ordre...
Moon Moons in our Solar System (Preview)	Videos	3	1696	Jan 18 00:26 2013 by Blobrana
Why explore the moons of our Solar System? Click to Play \| View Details As of October 2008, there are 327 formally classified moons, including 166 moons orbiting six of the eight "full-size" planets (Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune), while six orbit the "dwarf&q...
Moon Aegaeon (Preview)	Solar System	1	1320	Apr 15 17:42 2010 by Blobrana
Title: Aegaeon (Saturn LIII), a G-ring object Authors: M.M. Hedman, N.J. Cooper, C.D.Murray, K. Beurle, M.W. Evans, M.S. Tiscareno, J. A. Burns Aegaeon (Saturn LIII, S/2008 S1) is a small satellite of Saturn that orbits within a bright arc of material near the inner edge of Saturn's G ring. This obj...
Moon Anthe and Methone Arcs (Preview)	Solar System	0	987	Sep 5 16:41 2008 by Blobrana
Recent Cassini spacecraft images show arcs of material co-orbiting with the Saturnian moons Anthe and Methone. Expand (132kb, 591 x 551) Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Cassini imaging scientists believe t...
Moon Herse (Preview)	Solar System	3	1349	Nov 9 17:13 2009 by Blobrana
The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has approved the name Herse for the moon Jupiter L discovered on the 27th February, 2003 by B. Gladman, J. Kavelaars, J.-M. Petit, and L. Allen at the Mauna Kea observatory. Herse is a figure in Greek mythology, daughter of Cecrops (or, according to Paus...
Moon Satellite Systems (Preview)	Solar System	1	1163	Jun 3 12:30 2009 by Blobrana
Title: Planetesimals and Satellitesimals: Formation of the Satellite Systems Authors: Ignacio Mosqueira, Paul R. Estrada, Diego Turrini The origin of the regular satellites ties directly to planetary formation in that the satellites form in gas and dust disks around the giant planets and may b...
Moon S/2009 S 1 (Preview)	Solar System	1	1179	Jul 25 20:21 2014 by Blobrana
The Cassini spacecraft captured an image of a small object in the outer portion of Saturn's B ring casting a shadow on the rings as Saturn approaches its August 2009 equinox. This new moonlet, situated about 480 kilometres, inward from the outer edge of the B ring, was found by detection of its shadow w...
Saturn Moon 60 Saturn moons ( 1 2 3 4 5 … 6 ) (Preview)	Astronomy News	52	19355	Sep 15 20:14 2014 by Blobrana
Astronomers have discovered 12 new moons orbiting Saturn, bringing its number of natural satellites to 46. The moons are small, irregular bodies - probably only about 3-7km in size (assuming they have a surface albedo of 4%) - that are far from Saturn and take about two years to complete one o...
Moon Methone (Preview)	Solar System	3	1466	May 17 16:17 2013 by Blobrana
Expand (10kb, 1024 x 768) Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute This image of Methone was taken by the Cassini spaceprobe on the 1st February, 2010. The image was taken using the CL1 and CL3 filters.
Moon Erriapus (Preview)	Solar System	0	1531	Feb 9 01:01 2010 by Blobrana
Erriapus, also Saturn XXVIII, is a prograde irregular satellite of Saturn. Read more Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute This image of Erriapus was taken by the Cassini spaceprobe on the 4th February, 2010. The image wa...
Moon Jupiter Lysithea (Preview)	Solar System	0	1249	Jul 5 23:22 2010 by Blobrana
Lysithea is a prograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Seth Barnes Nicholson on the 6th July, 1938 at Mount Wilson Observatory and is named after the mythological Lysithea, daughter of Oceanus and one of Zeus' lovers. [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysithea_%28mo...
Moon Jupiter Callirrhoe (Preview)	Solar System	0	1144	Jul 19 23:26 2010 by Blobrana
Callirrhoe, also known as Jupiter XVII, is one of Jupiter's outermost named natural satellites. It is an irregular moon that orbits in a retrograde direction. Callirrhoe was imaged by Spacewatch at Kitt Peak National Observatory from October 6th through November 4th, 1999 and originally des...
moon Bianca (Preview)	Uranus	1	1788	Jan 23 00:03 2012 by Blobrana
Bianca is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2 on January 23, 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 9. It was named after the sister of Katherine in Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew. [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bianca...
Moon Miranda (Preview)	Uranus	4	2869	Feb 15 20:17 2014 by Blobrana
Miranda is the smallest and innermost of Uranus' five major moons. It was discovered by Gerard Kuiper on February 16, 1948 at McDonald Observatory. It was named after Miranda from William Shakespeare's play The Tempest by Kuiper in his report of the discovery. [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...
Pluto Moon Pluto P4 (Preview)	Pluto	9	3339	Jul 2 16:52 2013 by Blobrana
NASA's Hubble Discovers Another Moon Around Pluto These two images, taken about a week apart by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, show four moons orbiting the distant, icy dwarf planet Pluto. The green circle in both snapshots marks the newly discovered moon, temporarily dubbed P4, found by Hubble i...
Neptune Moon Despina (Preview)	Neptune	1	1455	Aug 1 22:43 2012 by Blobrana
Despina, also known as Neptune V, is the third closest inner satellite of Neptune. It is named after Despoina, a nymph who was a daughter of Poseidon and Demeter. Despina was discovered in late July 1989 from the images taken by the Voyager 2 probe. It was given the temporary designation S/1989 N 3. The...
moon Mars Deimos (Preview)	Deimos	0	1419	Aug 11 00:08 2011 by Blobrana
The martian moon Deimos was discovered by Astronomer Asaph Hall, Sr. at the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C on August 12, 1877, at about 07:48 UTC. Read more
Moon Mab (Preview)	Uranus	0	937	Aug 24 23:50 2011 by Blobrana
Uranian moons: Cupid and Mab were discovered by Mark R. Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer using the Hubble Space Telescope in 2003. Mab or Uranus XXVI (26), is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered by Mark R. Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer in August 25, 2003, using the Hubble Space Telescope. It...
Moon Cupid (Preview)	Uranus	0	1292	Aug 24 23:50 2011 by Blobrana
Uranian moons: Cupid and Mab were discovered by Mark R. Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer using the Hubble Space Telescope in 2003. Cupid is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered by Mark Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer in August 25, 2003, using the Hubble Space Telescope. It was named after a cha...
Jupiter Moon Ananke (Preview)	Jupiter	0	1269	Sep 27 23:15 2011 by Blobrana
Ananke is a retrograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Seth Barnes Nicholson at Mount Wilson Observatory on the 28th September, 1951 and is named after the mythological Ananke, the personification of Necessity, and the mother of the Moirae by Zeus. The adjectival form of the...
Jupiter Moon Himalia (Preview)	Jupiter	1	1536	Nov 18 15:52 2016 by Blobrana
Himalia is the largest irregular satellite of Jupiter, the sixth largest overall in size, and the fifth largest in mass. (Only the four Galilean moons of Jupiter have greater mass.) It was discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine at the Lick Observatory on 3 December 1904 and is named after the nymph Him...
Jupiter Moon Elara (Preview)	Jupiter	0	1245	Nov 27 04:02 2011 by Blobrana
Elara is a prograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine at Lick Observatory in 1905. It is the eighth largest moon of Jupiter and is named after the mother by Zeus of the giant Tityus. Read more...
Moon Uranus Cressida (Preview)	Uranus	1	1542	Jan 9 00:01 2013 by Blobrana
Cressida is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2 on 9 January 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 3. It was named after the Trojan daughter of Calchas, a tragic heroine who appears in William Shakespeare's play Troilus and Cressida (as w...
Moon Uranus Oberon (Preview)	Uranus	2	1430	Jan 10 23:48 2013 by Blobrana
Miranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania & Oberon Spoiler
Pluto Moon Nix (Preview)	Pluto	2	1396	Jul 17 18:48 2015 by Blobrana
Nix is a natural satellite of Pluto. It was discovered along with Hydra in June 2005, and is to be visited along with Pluto by the New Horizons mission in July 2015. The formal name of Pluto's moon "Nix", from the Greek goddess of darkness and night, and mother of Charon, was announced on June...
Pluto Moon Hydra (Preview)	Pluto	1	1262	Jul 15 20:13 2015 by Blobrana
Hydra is the second outermost known natural satellite of Pluto. It was discovered along with Nix in June 2005, and is to be visited along with Pluto by the New Horizons mission in July 2015. The name Hydra was announced on June 21, 2006, in IAU Circular 8723, along with the formal designation Pluto III....
Moon Belinda (Preview)	Uranus	0	1093	Aug 4 07:16 2012 by Blobrana
The Most Cruel Death of Cupid and Belinda A pair of star-cross'd lovers orbits Uranus, and when they rush to meet their fate, the duo could leave the cosmic stage littered with more bodies than the final scene of Hamlet. But the deaths of the moons Cupid and Belinda might not bring down the curtain on U...