Sycorax is the largest
retrograde irregular satellite
In astronomy, an irregular moon, irregular satellite or irregular natural satellite is a natural satellite following a distant, inclined, and often eccentric and retrograde orbit. They have been captured by their parent planet, unlike regular s ...
of
Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. Its name is a reference to the Greek god of the sky, Uranus (mythology), Uranus (Caelus), who, according to Greek mythology, was the great-grandfather of Ares (Mars (mythology), Mars), grandfather ...
. Sycorax was discovered on 6 September 1997 by
Brett J. Gladman
Brett James Gladman (born April 19, 1966) is a Canadian astronomer and a full professor at the University of British Columbia's Department of Physics and Astronomy in Vancouver, British Columbia. He holds the Canada Research Chair in planetary as ...
,
Philip D. Nicholson,
Joseph A. Burns Joseph Burns is a professor at Cornell University with a dual appointment in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) and the Astronomy department. His primary area of research is dynamics in planetary sciences.
Profession ...
, and
John J. Kavelaars using the 200-inch
Hale telescope
The Hale Telescope is a , 3.3 reflecting telescope at the Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California, US, named after astronomer George Ellery Hale. With funding from the Rockefeller Foundation in 1928, he orchestrated the planning, de ...
, together with
Caliban
Caliban ( ), son of the witch Sycorax, is an important character in William Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest''.
His character is one of the few Shakespearean figures to take on a life of its own "outside" Shakespeare's own work: as Russell H ...
, and given the temporary designation S/1997 U 2.
Officially confirmed as Uranus XVII, it was named after
Sycorax,
Caliban
Caliban ( ), son of the witch Sycorax, is an important character in William Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest''.
His character is one of the few Shakespearean figures to take on a life of its own "outside" Shakespeare's own work: as Russell H ...
's mother in
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's play ''
The Tempest''.
Orbit
Sycorax follows a distant orbit, more than 20 times further from Uranus than the furthest regular moon,
Oberon
Oberon () is a king of the fairies in medieval and Renaissance literature. He is best known as a character in William Shakespeare's play ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'', in which he is King of the Fairies and spouse of Titania, Queen of the Fair ...
. Its orbit is retrograde, moderately
inclined
Incline, inclined, inclining, or inclination may refer to:
*Grade (slope), the tilt, steepness, or angle from horizontal of a topographic feature (hillside, meadow, etc.) or constructed element (road, railway, field, etc.)
*Slope, the tilt, steepn ...
and
eccentric
Eccentricity or eccentric may refer to:
* Eccentricity (behavior), odd behavior on the part of a person, as opposed to being "normal"
Mathematics, science and technology Mathematics
* Off-center, in geometry
* Eccentricity (graph theory) of a v ...
. The orbital parameters suggest that it may belong, together with
Setebos and
Prospero
Prospero ( ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of William Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest''.
Prospero is the rightful Duke of Milan, whose usurping brother, Antonio, had put him (with his three-year-old daughter, Miranda) to sea ...
, to the same dynamic cluster, suggesting common origin.
The diagram illustrates the orbital parameters of the retrograde
irregular satellite
In astronomy, an irregular moon, irregular satellite or irregular natural satellite is a natural satellite following a distant, inclined, and often eccentric and retrograde orbit. They have been captured by their parent planet, unlike regular s ...
s of Uranus (in polar co-ordinates) with the eccentricity of the orbits represented by the segments extending from the
pericentre
An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary (astronomy), primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion.
General description
There are two ...
to the
apocentre.
Physical characteristics
The diameter of Sycorax is estimated at 165 km based on the thermal emission data from
Spitzer
Spitzer is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Andre Spitzer (1945–1972), Israeli fencing coach and victim of the Munich massacre
* Bernard Spitzer (1924–2014), American real estate developer and philanthropist, father of Eli ...
and
Herschel Space telescopes
making it the largest irregular satellite of Uranus, comparable in size with
Puck and with
Himalia, the biggest irregular satellite of Jupiter.
The satellite appears ''light-red'' in the
visible spectrum
The visible spectrum is the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that is visual perception, visible to the human eye. Electromagnetic radiation in this range of wavelengths is called ''visible light'' or simply light. A typical human eye wil ...
(
colour indices , ,
), redder than Himalia but still less red than most
Kuiper belt
The Kuiper belt () is a circumstellar disc in the outer Solar System, extending from the orbit of Neptune at 30 astronomical units (AU) to approximately 50 AU from the Sun. It is similar to the asteroid belt, but is far larger—20 times ...
objects. However, in the
near infrared
Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...
, the spectrum turns blue between 0.8 and 1.25 μm and finally becomes neutral at the longer wavelengths.
The rotation period of Sycorax is estimated at about 6.9 hours.
Rotation causes periodical variations of the visible magnitude with the amplitude of 0.12.
The rotation axis of Sycorax is unknown, though measurements of its
light curve
In astronomy, a light curve is a graph of light intensity of a celestial object or region as a function of time, typically with the magnitude of light received on the y axis and with time on the x axis. The light is usually in a particular frequ ...
suggest it is being viewed at an near equator-on configuration. In this case, Sycorax may have a north pole
right ascension
Right ascension (abbreviated RA; symbol ) is the angular distance of a particular point measured eastward along the celestial equator from the Sun at the March equinox to the (hour circle of the) point in question above the earth.
When paired w ...
around 356° and a north pole
declination
In astronomy, declination (abbreviated dec; symbol ''δ'') is one of the two angles that locate a point on the celestial sphere in the equatorial coordinate system, the other being hour angle. Declination's angle is measured north or south of the ...
around 45°.
Origin
It is hypothesized that Sycorax is a captured object; it did not form in the accretion disk which existed around Uranus just after its formation. No exact capture mechanism is known, but capturing a moon requires the
dissipation
In thermodynamics, dissipation is the result of an irreversible process that takes place in homogeneous thermodynamic systems. In a dissipative process, energy (internal, bulk flow kinetic, or system potential) transforms from an initial form to a ...
of energy. Possible capture processes include gas drag in the
protoplanetary disk
A protoplanetary disk is a rotating circumstellar disc of dense gas and dust surrounding a young newly formed star, a T Tauri star, or Herbig Ae/Be star. The protoplanetary disk may also be considered an accretion disk for the star itself, be ...
and
many-body interactions and capture during the fast growth of Uranus's mass (so-called ''pull-down'').
See also
*
Moons of Uranus
Uranus, the seventh planet of the Solar System, has 27 known moons, most of which are named after characters that appear in, or are mentioned in, the works of William Shakespeare and Alexander Pope. Uranus's moons are divided into three groups: t ...
*
Irregular moon
In astronomy, an irregular moon, irregular satellite or irregular natural satellite is a natural satellite following a distant, inclined, and often eccentric and retrograde orbit. They have been captured by their parent planet, unlike regular sat ...
s
References
*
*
*
*
External links
Sycorax Profile(b
NASA's Solar System Exploration
(by
Scott S. Sheppard
Scott Sander Sheppard (born 1977) is an American astronomer and a discoverer of numerous moons, comets and minor planets in the outer Solar System.
He is an astronomer in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism at the Carnegie Institution for Scie ...
)
MPC: Natural Satellites Ephemeris Service
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sycorax (Moon)
Moons of Uranus
Irregular satellites
19970906
Moons with a retrograde orbit