Lysithea is a prograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Seth Barnes Nicholson in 1938 at Mount Wilson Observatory and is named after the mythological Lysithea, daughter of

Oceanus In Greek mythology, Oceanus (; grc-gre, , Ancient Greek pronunciation: , also Ὠγενός , Ὤγενος , or Ὠγήν ) was a Titan son of Uranus and Gaia, the husband of his sister the Titan Tethys, and the father of the river gods a ...

and one of Zeus' lovers. Lysithea did not receive its present name until 1975; before then, it was simply known as . It was sometimes called "

Demeter In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Demeter (; Attic: ''Dēmḗtēr'' ; Doric: ''Dāmā́tēr'') is the Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over crops, grains, food, and the fertility of the earth. Although s ...

" from 1955 to 1975. It belongs to the

Himalia group The Himalia group is a group of prograde irregular satellites of Jupiter that follow similar orbits to Himalia and are thought to have a common origin.Scott S. Sheppard, David C. Jewitt ''An abundant population of small irregular satellites arou ...

, moons orbiting between 11 and 13 Gm from Jupiter at an inclination of about 28.3°. Its orbital elements are as of January 2000. They are continuously changing due to

solar Solar may refer to: Astronomy * Of or relating to the Sun ** Solar telescope, a special purpose telescope used to observe the Sun ** A device that utilizes solar energy (e.g. "solar panels") ** Solar calendar, a calendar whose dates indicate t ...

and planetary perturbations. Lysithea-WISE

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External links

Lysithea: Overview
b
NASA's Solar System Exploration
(by Scott S. Sheppard) {{DEFAULTSORT:Lysithea (Moon) Himalia group Moons of Jupiter Irregular satellites 19380706 Discoveries by Seth B. Nicholson Moons with a prograde orbit

See also

References

External links