This article is about natural satellites in general. For Earth's natural satellite, see Moon. For orbiting artificial spacecrafts, see Satellite.
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The Moon orbiting around Earth (observed by the Deep Space Climate Observatory)
A natural satellite is, in the most common usage, an astronomical body that orbits a planet, dwarf planet, or small Solar System body (or sometimes another natural satellite). Natural satellites are colloquially referred to as moons, a derivation from the Moon of Earth.
In the Solar System, there are six planetary satellite systems containing 284 known natural satellites altogether. Seven objects commonly considered dwarf planets by astronomers are also known to have natural satellites: Pluto, Salacia, Haumea, Quaoar, Makemake, Gonggong, and Eris.[1] As of January 2022, there are 447 other minor planets known to have natural satellites.[2]
A planet usually has at least around 10,000 times the mass of any natural satellites that orbit it, with a correspondingly much larger diameter.[3] The Earth–Moon system is a unique exception in the Solar System; at 3,474 kilometres (2,158 miles) across, the Moon is 0.273 times the diameter of Earth and about 1⁄80 of its mass.[4] The next largest ratios are the Neptune–Triton system at 0.055 (with a mass ratio of about 1 to 4790), the Saturn–Titan system at 0.044 (with the second mass ratio next to the Earth–Moon system, 1 to 4220), the Jupiter–Ganymede system at 0.038, and the Uranus–Titania system at 0.031. For the category of dwarf planets, Charon has the largest ratio, being 0.52 the diameter and 12.2% the mass of Pluto.
^Cite error: The named reference WGPSN was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference Johnston was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Canup, Robin M.; Ward, William R. (June 2006). "A common mass scaling for satellite systems of gaseous planets". Nature. 441 (7095): 834–839. Bibcode:2006Natur.441..834C. doi:10.1038/nature04860. ISSN 1476-4687. PMID 16778883. S2CID 4327454.
^Glenday, Craig (2014). Guinness World Records 2014. Guinness World Records Limited. p. 186. ISBN 978-1-908843-15-9.
A naturalsatellite is, in the most common usage, an astronomical body that orbits a planet, dwarf planet, or small Solar System body (or sometimes another...
planets and six dwarf planets are known to be orbited by at least 299 naturalsatellites, or moons. At least 19 of them are large enough to be gravitationally...
They are respectively the fourth-, sixth-, first-, and third-largest naturalsatellites in the Solar System, containing approximately 99.997% of the total...
itself. Over a century passed before the discovery of the second naturalsatellite, Nereid, in 1949, and another 40 years passed before Proteus, Neptune's...
albedos. Absolute magnitudes of irregular satellites were taken from the Minor Planet Center's NaturalSatellites Ephemeris Service. Calculations were made...
The Moon is Earth's only naturalsatellite. It orbits at an average distance of 384,400 km (238,900 mi), about 30 times the diameter of Earth. Over time...
and if a satellite, was near one of its elongations. Until this time I had said nothing to anyone at the Observatory of my search for a satellite of Mars...
while orbital elements of irregular satellites are based on the epoch of 1 January 2020. List of naturalsatellites The mass of Triton is about 2.14 × 1022 kg...
of naturalsatellites is the potential of moons to provide habitats for life, though it is not an indicator that they harbor it. Naturalsatellites are...
The dwarf planet Pluto has five naturalsatellites. In order of distance from Pluto, they are Charon, Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. Charon, the largest...
The timeline of discovery of Solar System planets and their naturalsatellites charts the progress of the discovery of new bodies over history. Each object...
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object in space, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. Satellites have a variety...
of the existence of other moons of Earth—that is, of one or more naturalsatellites with relatively stable orbits of Earth, other than the Moon—have existed...
or a hypothetical naturalsatellite that orbits the moon of a planet. It is inferred from the empirical study of naturalsatellites in the Solar System...
eccentric and appears to be greatly influenced by the larger satellite. Two small satellites were discovered around Haumea (which was at that time still...
Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun and lacks any naturalsatellites. An undiscovered moon orbiting the planet was hypothesized to exist in the early...
In astronomy, an irregular moon, irregular satellite, or irregular naturalsatellite is a naturalsatellite following a distant, inclined, and often highly...
A communications satellite is an artificial satellite that relays and amplifies radio telecommunication signals via a transponder; it creates a communication...
Mimas, also designated Saturn I, is the seventh-largest naturalsatellite of Saturn. With a mean diameter of 396.4 kilometres or 246.3 miles, Mimas is...
Yavin 4 (or Yavin IV) is a naturalsatellite in the Star Wars fictional universe. Located in the Outer Rim, this moon orbits the gas giant Yavin. It appears...
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