Dia , also known as Jupiter LIII, is a
prograde irregular satellite of
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a Jupiter mass, mass more than 2.5 times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined a ...
. Provisionally known as S/2000 J 11, it received its name on March 7, 2015.
[CBET (Central Bureau Electronic Telegram) 4075: 20150307: Satellites of Jupiter, March 7, 2015] It is named after
Dia, daughter of Deioneus (or Eioneus), wife of
Ixion
In Greek mythology, Ixion ( ; ) was king of the Lapiths, the most ancient tribe of Thessaly.
Family
Ixion was the son of Ares, or Leonteus (mythology), Leonteus, or Antion and Perimele, or the notorious evildoer Phlegyas, whose name connotes " ...
. According to Homer, she was seduced by Zeus in stallion form;
Pirithous was the issue.
The satellite is one of several known small bodies in the
Himalia group.
[ Sheppard, S. S.; Jewitt, D. C.]
''An abundant population of small irregular satellites around Jupiter''
, ''Nature'', 423 (May 2003), pp. 261–263
Dia is thought to be about 4 kilometres in diameter.
[Sheppard, S. S.; Jewitt, D. C.; Porco, C.]
''Jupiter's outer satellites and Trojans''
, in ''Jupiter: The planet, satellites and magnetosphere,'' edited by Fran Bagenal, Timothy E. Dowling, William B. McKinnon, Cambridge Planetary Science, Vol. 1, Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, , 2004, pp. 263-280 It orbits Jupiter at an average distance of 12 million km in 274 days, at an
inclination of 28° (to Jupiter's equator), and with an
eccentricity
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-Centre (geometry), center, in geometry
* Eccentricity (g ...
of 0.21.
Observational history
Dia was discovered by a team of astronomers from the
University of Hawaii
A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...
led by
Scott S. Sheppard in 2000 with an observation arc of 26 days.
Initial observations were not followed up, and Dia was not observed for more than a decade after 2000. This apparent disappearance led some astronomers to consider the moon lost.
One theory was that it had crashed into
Himalia, creating a faint ring around Jupiter.
"Lunar marriage may have given Jupiter a ring"
''New Scientist
''New Scientist'' is a popular science magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London, it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organ ...
'', March 20, 2010, p. 16. However, it was finally recovered in observations made in 2010 and 2011.
References
External links
Natural Satellites Ephemeris Service
Minor Planet Center
Planetary Satellite Mean Orbital Parameters
NASA JPL
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dia
Himalia group
Moons of Jupiter
Irregular satellites
Discoveries by Scott S. Sheppard
Discoveries by David C. Jewitt
Discoveries by Yanga R. Fernandez
Discoveries by Eugene A. Magnier
20001205
Moons with a prograde orbit