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Cordelia (moon)
Encyclopedia
Cordelia is the innermost moon
of Uranus
. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2
on January 20, 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 7. It was not detected again until the Hubble Space Telescope
observed it in 1997. Cordelia takes its name from the youngest daughter of Lear in William Shakespeare
's King Lear
. It is also designated Uranus VI.
Other than its orbit, radius of 20 km and geometric albedo of 0.08 virtually nothing is known about it. At the Voyager 2 images Cordelia appears as an elongated object, the major axis pointing towards Uranus. The ratio of axes of the Cordelia's prolate spheroid is 0.7 ± 0.2.
Cordelia acts as the inner shepherd satellite for Uranus' Epsilon ring
. Cordelia's orbit is within Uranus' synchronous orbit radius, and is therefore slowly decaying due to tidal deceleration.
Inner satellite
In astronomy, an inner moon is a natural satellite following a prograde, low inclination orbit inwards of the large satellites of the parent planet. They are generally thought to have been formed in situ at the same time as the coalescence of the original planet...
of Uranus
Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. It has the third-largest planetary radius and fourth-largest planetary mass in the Solar System. It is named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus , the father of Cronus and grandfather of Zeus...
. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2
Voyager 2
The Voyager 2 spacecraft is a 722-kilogram space probe launched by NASA on August 20, 1977 to study the outer Solar System and eventually interstellar space...
on January 20, 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 7. It was not detected again until the Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...
observed it in 1997. Cordelia takes its name from the youngest daughter of Lear in William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's King Lear
King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The title character descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological...
. It is also designated Uranus VI.
Other than its orbit, radius of 20 km and geometric albedo of 0.08 virtually nothing is known about it. At the Voyager 2 images Cordelia appears as an elongated object, the major axis pointing towards Uranus. The ratio of axes of the Cordelia's prolate spheroid is 0.7 ± 0.2.
Cordelia acts as the inner shepherd satellite for Uranus' Epsilon ring
Rings of Uranus
The planet Uranus has a system of rings intermediate in complexity between the more extensive set around Saturn and the simpler systems around Jupiter and Neptune. The rings of Uranus were discovered on March 10, 1977, by James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham, and Douglas J. Mink...
. Cordelia's orbit is within Uranus' synchronous orbit radius, and is therefore slowly decaying due to tidal deceleration.
External links
- Cordelia Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
- Uranus' Known Satellites (by Scott S. SheppardScott S. SheppardScott S. Sheppard is an astronomer in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism at the Carnegie Institution for Science. Starting as a graduate student at the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii, he was credited with the discovery of many small moons of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and...
)