Kale , also known as , is a
retrograde irregular satellite
In astronomy, an irregular moon, irregular satellite, or irregular natural satellite is a natural satellite following an orbit that is irregular in some of the following ways: Distant; inclined; highly elliptical; retrograde. They have often be ...
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 ...
. It was discovered in 2001 by astronomers
Scott S. Sheppard, D. Jewitt, and J. Kleyna, and was originally designated as .
[MPEC 2002-J54: ''Eleven New Satellites of Jupiter''](_blank)
2002 May (discovery and ephemeris)
Kale is about in diameter, and orbits Jupiter at an average distance of in 736.55 days, at an
inclination
Orbital inclination measures the tilt of an object's orbit around a celestial body. It is expressed as the angle between a reference plane and the orbital plane or axis of direction of the orbiting object.
For a satellite orbiting the Eart ...
of 165° to the
ecliptic
The ecliptic or ecliptic plane is the orbital plane of Earth's orbit, Earth around the Sun. It was a central concept in a number of ancient sciences, providing the framework for key measurements in astronomy, astrology and calendar-making.
Fr ...
(166° to Jupiter's equator), in a
retrograde direction and with an
orbital eccentricity
In astrodynamics, the orbital eccentricity of an astronomical object is a dimensionless parameter that determines the amount by which its orbit around another body deviates from a perfect circle. A value of 0 is a circular orbit, values be ...
of 0.2011.
It was named in August 2003
IAUC 8177: ''Satellites of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus''
2003 August (naming the moon) after Kale
Kale (), also called leaf cabbage, belongs to a group of cabbage (''Brassica oleracea'') cultivars primarily grown for their Leaf vegetable, edible leaves; it has also been used as an ornamental plant. Its multiple different cultivars vary quite ...
, one of the Charites
In Greek mythology, the Charites (; ), singular Charis (), also called the Graces, are goddesses who personify beauty and grace. According to Hesiod, the Charites were Aglaia (Grace), Aglaea, Euphrosyne, and Thalia (Grace), Thalia, who were the ...
(, , 'Graces'), daughters of Zeus
Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus.
Zeus is the child ...
(Jupiter). Kale is the spouse of Hephaestus
Hephaestus ( , ; wikt:Hephaestus#Alternative forms, eight spellings; ) is the Greek god of artisans, blacksmiths, carpenters, craftsmen, fire, metallurgy, metalworking, sculpture and volcanoes.Walter Burkert, ''Greek Religion'' 1985: III.2. ...
according to some authors (although most have Aphrodite
Aphrodite (, ) is an Greek mythology, ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, procreation, and as her syncretism, syncretised Roman counterpart , desire, Sexual intercourse, sex, fertility, prosperity, and ...
play that role).
It belongs to the Carme group
The Carme group is a group of retrograde irregular satellites of Jupiter that follow similar orbits to Carme and are thought to have a common origin.
Their semi-major axes (distances from Jupiter) range between 22.7 and 23.6 Gm, their orbital ...
, made up of irregular retrograde moons orbiting Jupiter at a distance ranging between and at an inclination of about 165°.
References
Carme group
Moons of Jupiter
Irregular satellites
Discoveries by Scott S. Sheppard
20011209
Discoveries by David C. Jewitt
Discoveries by Jan Kleyna
Moons with a retrograde orbit
{{Jupiter-stub