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Although the Moon is Earth's only natural satellite, there are a number of near-Earth objects (NEOs) with orbits that are in resonance with Earth. These have been called "second" moons of Earth or "minimoons". [2] [3] 469219 Kamoʻoalewa, an asteroid discovered on 27 April 2016, is possibly the most stable quasi-satellite of Earth. [4]
The rings are believed to have been present approximately 466 million years ago. [1] [7] [8] The Hirnantian glaciation may be a direct result of the rings shielding light from reaching the Earth, [9] and the rings may have existed for up to 40 million years.
Moons are classed into two separate categories according to their orbits: regular moons, which have prograde orbits (they orbit in the direction of their planets' rotation) and lie close to the plane of their equators, and irregular moons, whose orbits can be pro- or retrograde (against the direction of their planets' rotation) and often lie at ...
Earth will get a second moon for about two months this year when a small asteroid begins to orbit our planet. The asteroid was discovered in August and is set to become a mini-moon, revolving ...
The giant planets have extensive systems of natural satellites, including half a dozen comparable in size to Earth's Moon: the four Galilean moons, Saturn's Titan, and Neptune's Triton. Saturn has an additional six mid-sized natural satellites massive enough to have achieved hydrostatic equilibrium , and Uranus has five.
Gravitational accelerations at L 4. The Hill sphere is the region in which an astronomical body dominates the attraction of satellites. Of the Solar System planets, Neptune and Uranus have the largest Hill spheres, due to the lessened gravitational influence of the Sun at their far orbits, however all of the giant planets have Hill spheres in the vicinity of 100 million kilometres in radius.
The 400-meter moonlet Earhart in Saturn's A Ring, just outside the Encke Gap Another image of Earhart Another moonlet named Bleriot A moonlet named Santos-Dumont A moonlet in Saturn's A ring A moonlet , minor moon , minor natural satellite , or minor satellite is a particularly small natural satellite orbiting a planet , dwarf planet , or other ...
Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. The new year kicks off with the peak of the Quadrantids, one of the strongest meteor showers of the ...