Astronomer Finds New Moon Orbiting Neptune

The Indian Panorama - Newspaper - Logo

CAPE CANAVERAL (TIP): An astronomer studying archived images of Neptune taken by the Hubble Space Telescope has found a 14th moon orbiting the planet, NASA said. Estimated to be about 12 miles in diameter, the moon is located about 65,400 miles from Neptune. Astronomer Mark Showalter, with the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, was searching Hubble images for moons inside faint ring fragments circling Neptune when he decided to run his analysis program on a broader part of the sky.

“We had been processing the data for quite some time and it was on a whim that I said, ‘OK, let’s just look out further,” Showalter told Reuters. “I changed my program so that instead of stopping just outside the ring system it processed the data all the way out, walked away from my computer and waited an hour while it did all the processing for me. When I came back, I looked at the image and there was this extra dot that wasn’t supposed to be there,” Showalter said.

Follow-up analysis of other archived Hubble images of Neptune verified the object was a moon. Showalter and colleagues are mulling over a name to propose to the International Astronomical Union, which has final say in the matter. “We haven’t really gotten far with that. What I can say is that the name will be out of Roman and Greek mythology and it will have to do with characters who are related to Neptune, the god of the oceans,” Showalter said. Neptune’s largest moon, Triton, was discovered in 1846, just days after the planet itself was found.

Nereid, Neptune’s third largest moon was found in 1949. Images taken by NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft unveiled the second largest moon, Proteus, and five smaller moons, Naiad, Thalassa, Despina, Galatea and Larissa. Ground-based telescopes found Halimede, Laomedeia, Sao and Nestor in 2002. Sister moon Psamathe turned up a year later. The newly found moon, designated S/2004 N 1, is located between Larissa and Proteus. It orbits Neptune in 23 hours.

60 Comments

  1. Usually I don’t read article on blogs, but I would like to say that this write-up very forced me to try and do it! Your writing style has been amazed me. Thanks, very nice article.

  2. Hey! Quick question that’s entirely off topic. Do you know how to make your site mobile friendly? My weblog looks weird when browsing from my apple iphone. I’m trying to find a theme or plugin that might be able to resolve this issue. If you have any suggestions, please share. Thank you!

  3. After going over a number of the blog posts on your site, I seriously appreciate your technique of blogging. I saved it to my bookmark site list and will be checking back soon. Take a look at my website too and let me know how you feel.

  4. Hi, Neat post. There is a problem along with your web site in internet explorer, might check this… IE still is the market chief and a huge component to people will miss your magnificent writing due to this problem.

  5. With havin so much content do you ever run into any problems of plagorism or copyright violation? My site has a lot of exclusive content I’ve either created myself or outsourced but it looks like a lot of it is popping it up all over the web without my permission. Do you know any ways to help protect against content from being stolen? I’d genuinely appreciate it.

  6. I am glad for writing to make you know what a really good encounter our child obtained checking yuor web blog. She realized many details, including what it is like to possess a wonderful teaching style to have other individuals clearly fully understand certain grueling matters. You really did more than our expected results. I appreciate you for providing the precious, safe, explanatory and cool guidance on that topic to Mary.

  7. The following time I learn a weblog, I hope that it doesnt disappoint me as a lot as this one. I mean, I do know it was my option to read, but I actually thought youd have one thing interesting to say. All I hear is a bunch of whining about something that you possibly can fix if you werent too busy on the lookout for attention.

  8. The blog’s story about the discovery of Neptune’s 14th moon shows how curiosity and persistence in science can uncover hidden wonders, even in archived data. Just as astronomers expand our understanding of the universe by looking deeper, gaming also offers ways to explore and relive experiences across time. Game Consoles and Game Handheld devices provide modern entertainment, while Retro Game Handheld systems bring back nostalgic joy that feels timeless. At Retro Game Consoles, we emphasize how these platforms let you enjoy both innovation and tradition, proving that whether in space exploration or gaming, discovery always brings excitement.

  9. Hello would you mind letting me know which web host you’re utilizing? I’ve loaded your blog in 3 different browsers and I must say this blog loads a lot faster then most. Can you suggest a good internet hosting provider at a honest price? Thanks, I appreciate it!

  10. Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your weblog and wanted to say that I’ve really enjoyed surfing around your blog posts. In any case I will be subscribing to your rss feed and I hope you write again soon!

  11. It’s actually a great and helpful piece of information. I am satisfied that you simply shared this helpful information with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.

  12. Im now not sure the place you are getting your info, but good topic. I needs to spend a while studying more or working out more. Thank you for excellent info I used to be searching for this info for my mission.

  13. I’ve been browsing online more than three hours these days, yet I never discovered any attention-grabbing article like yours. It’s pretty price enough for me. In my view, if all site owners and bloggers made just right content material as you probably did, the net will likely be a lot more helpful than ever before. “Revolution is not a onetime event.” by Audre Lorde.

  14. Hello! This is my first visit to your blog! We are a team of volunteers and starting a new project in a community in the same niche. Your blog provided us useful information to work on. You have done a marvellous job!

  15. Does your website have a contact page? I’m having trouble locating it but, I’d like to shoot you an e-mail. I’ve got some creative ideas for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great website and I look forward to seeing it expand over time.

  16. We’re a group of volunteers and opening a new scheme in our community. Your site offered us with valuable info to work on. You have done an impressive job and our whole community will be grateful to you.

  17. An outstanding share! I’ve just forwarded this onto a co-worker who has been doing a little research on this. And he in fact ordered me lunch because I discovered it for him… lol. So allow me to reword this…. Thanks for the meal!! But yeah, thanx for spending time to talk about this issue here on your web site.

  18. My partner and I stumbled over here by a different web address and thought I should check things out. I like what I see so now i am following you. Look forward to finding out about your web page for a second time.

  19. Aw, this was an extremely good post. Taking a few minutes and actual effort to generate a great article… but what can I say… I hesitate a whole lot and don’t manage to get nearly anything done.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.