S/2022 J 3 Explained

S/2022 J 3
Discoverer:Scott S. Sheppard
Discovery Site:Cerro Tololo Obs.
Discovered:30 August 2022
Epoch:31 March 2024 (JD 2460400.5)
Observation Arc:20.61 yr (7,528 d)
Earliest Precovery Date:26 February 2003
Eccentricity:0.2125986
Period:–1.65 yr (–601.92 days)
Mean Anomaly:294.51229°
Mean Motion: / day
Inclination:145.73211°
Asc Node:302.06960°
Arg Peri:67.60587°
Satellite Of:Jupiter
Group:Ananke group
Mean Diameter:
Albedo:0.04
Magnitude:24.0 (average)
Abs Magnitude:17.3

S/2022 J 3 is a small outer natural satellite of Jupiter discovered by Scott S. Sheppard on 30 August 2022, using the 4.0-meter Víctor M. Blanco Telescope at Cerro Tololo Observatory, Chile. It was announced by the Minor Planet Center on 22 February 2023, after observations were collected over a long enough time span to confirm the satellite's orbit.

S/2022 J 3 is part of the Ananke group, a cluster of retrograde irregular moons of Jupiter that follow similar orbits to Ananke at semi-major axes between NaNe6km, orbital eccentricities between 0.1 and 0.4, and inclinations between 139 and 155°. It has a diameter of about for an absolute magnitude of 17.3. The moon has been observed for over 20 years, with the earliest known observation on 26 February 2003.