Sycorax (moon)
Moon of Uranus / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Sycorax (moon)?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
SHOW ALL QUESTIONS
For other uses, see Sycorax (disambiguation).
Sycorax /ˈsɪkɒræks/ is the largest irregular satellite of Uranus. Sycorax was discovered on 6 September 1997 by Brett J. Gladman, Philip D. Nicholson, Joseph A. Burns, and John J. Kavelaars using the 200-inch Hale telescope, together with Caliban, and given the temporary designation S/1997 U 2.[1]
Quick Facts Discovery, Discovered by ...
Discovery[1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by | |
Discovery site | Hale Telescope at Palomar Obs. |
Discovery date | 6 September 1997 |
Designations | |
Designation | Uranus XVII |
Pronunciation | /ˈsɪkɒræks/[2][3] |
Named after | Sycorax |
S/1997 U 2 | |
Adjectives | Sycoraxian /sɪkɒˈræksiən/[4] |
Orbital characteristics[5] | |
Epoch 31 July 2016 (JD 2457600.5) | |
Observation arc | 32.37 yr (11,815 d) |
Earliest precovery date | 2 June 1984 |
12,193,230 km (0.0815067 AU) | |
Eccentricity | 0.4841889 |
3.52 yr (1,286.28 d) | |
160.58731° | |
0° 16m 47.56s / day | |
Inclination | 153.22796° (to the ecliptic) 159.403° (to local Laplace plane)[6] |
258.56478° | |
16.29680° | |
Satellite of | Uranus |
Physical characteristics | |
Mean diameter | 157+23 −15 km[7] 165+36 −42 km[8] |
Mass | ~2.5×1018 kg (estimate)[6] |
Mean density | ~1.3 g/cm3 (assumed)[6] |
6.9162±0.0013 hr (double-peaked)[7] 3.6 hr (single-peaked)[9] | |
Albedo | 0.065+0.015 −0.011[7] 0.049+0.038 −0.017[8] |
Temperature | ~65 K (mean estimate) |
20.8 (V)[10] | |
7.5±0.04[7] 7.83±0.06[8] | |
Close
Officially confirmed as Uranus XVII, it was named after Sycorax, Caliban's mother in William Shakespeare's play The Tempest.