Calypso (moon) explained
| Calypso |
| Pronounced: | [1] |
| Adjectives: | Calypsoan,[2] Calypsonian [3] |
| Named After: | Καλυψώ Kalypsō |
| Mpc Name: | Saturn XIV |
| Alt Names: | Tethys C
S/1980 S 25 |
| Discoverer: | - Dan Pascu
- P. Kenneth Seidelmann
- William A. Baum
- Douglas G. Currie
|
| Discovered: | March 13, 1980 |
| Inclination: | 1.56° (to Saturn's equator) |
| Satellite Of: | Saturn |
| Group: | L5 Tethys trojan |
| Dimensions: | km
(± km) |
| Mass: | (assumed; unmeasured) |
| Density: | (assumed; unmeasured) |
| Surface Grav: | ≈  |
| Escape Velocity: | ≈  km/s at longest axis
to ≈  km/s at poles |
| Rotation: | synchronous |
| Axial Tilt: | zero |
Calypso is a moon of Saturn. It was discovered in 1980, from ground-based observations, by Dan Pascu, P. Kenneth Seidelmann, William A. Baum, and Douglas G. Currie, and was provisionally designated (the 25th satellite of Saturn discovered in 1980). Several other apparitions of it were recorded in the following months:,,, and . In 1983 it was officially named after Calypso of Greek mythology. It is also designated or Tethys C.
Calypso is co-orbital with the moon Tethys, and resides in Tethys' trailing Lagrangian point, 60 degrees behind Tethys. This relationship was first identified by Seidelmann Harrington et al. 1981}}|Seidelmann et al. in 1981. The moon Telesto resides in the other (leading) Lagrangian point of Tethys, 60 degrees in the other direction from Tethys. Calypso and Telesto have been termed "Tethys trojans", by analogy to the trojan asteroids, and are half of the four presently known trojan moons.
Like many other small Saturnian moons and small asteroids, Calypso is irregularly shaped, has overlapping large craters, and appears to also have loose surface material capable of smoothing the craters' appearance. Its surface is one of the most reflective (at visual wavelengths) in the Solar System, with a visual geometric albedo of 1.34. This very high albedo is the result of the sandblasting of particles from Saturn's E-ring, a faint ring composed of small, water-ice particles generated by Enceladus' south polar geysers.
See also
References
Sources
- Marsden . Brian G. . Satellites of Saturn . July 31, 1980 . discovery . IAU Circular . 3496 . 2011-12-23 . .
- Marsden . Brian G. . Satellites of Saturn . December 11, 1980 . IAU Circular . 3549 . 2011-12-23 . .
- Marsden . Brian G. . Satellites of Saturn . April 16, 1981 . IAU Circular . 3593 . 2011-12-23 . .
- Marsden . Brian G. . Satellites of Saturn . May 18, 1981 . IAU Circular . 3605 . 2011-12-23 . .
- Marsden . Brian G. . Satellites of Jupiter and Saturn . September 30, 1983 . IAU Circular . 3872 . 2011-12-23 . . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110725035059/http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/iauc/03800/03872.html . 2011-07-25 .
- Web site: Mason . Betsy . February 15, 2010 . New Close-Ups of Saturn's Moons Mimas and Calypso . wired.com . Condé Nast Digital . 2011-12-23 .
- 10.1016/0019-1035(81)90172-X. Seidelmann . P. K.. Harrington . R. S.. Pascu . D.. Baum . W. A.. Currie . D. G.. Westphal . J. A.. Danielson . G. E.. 1981. Saturn satellite observations and orbits from the 1980 ring plane crossing. Icarus. 47. 2. 282. 1981Icar...47..282S. .
- 10.1016/j.icarus.2010.01.025. Thomas. P. C.. July 2010. Sizes, shapes, and derived properties of the saturnian satellites after the Cassini nominal mission. Icarus. 208. 1. 395–401. 2010Icar..208..395T. 2015-09-04. 2018-12-23. https://web.archive.org/web/20181223003125/http://www.ciclops.org/media/sp/2011/6794_16344_0.pdf. dead.
- 10.1126/science.1134681. Verbiscer. A.. French. R.. Showalter. M.. Helfenstein. P.. Enceladus: Cosmic Graffiti Artist Caught in the Act. Science. 315. 5813. 815. 9 February 2007. 17289992. 2007Sci...315..815V. 21932253. . 20 December 2011. (supporting online material, table S1)
- . P. C. . Thomas . P. . Helfenstein . The small inner satellites of Saturn: Shapes, structures and some implications . Icarus . July 2020 . 344 . 113355 . 20 . 10.1016/j.icarus.2019.06.016 . 2020Icar..34413355T. 197474587 .
External links
Notes and References
- Calypso . https://web.archive.org/web/20200322182526/https://www.lexico.com/definition/calypso . dead . March 22, 2020 . Lexico UK English Dictionary . Oxford University Press.
- The Emerson Society Quarterly, vol. 50, p. 56, 1968
- Calypsonian . https://web.archive.org/web/20200322184003/https://www.lexico.com/definition/calypsonian . dead . March 22, 2020 . Lexico UK English Dictionary UK English Dictionary . Oxford University Press.
