Cupid is an inner satellite

Inner satellite

In astronomy, an inner moon is a natural satellite following a prograde, low inclination orbit inwards of the large satellites of the parent planet. They are generally thought to have been formed in situ at the same time as the coalescence of the original planet...

 of Uranus

Uranus

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. It has the third-largest planetary radius and fourth-largest planetary mass in the Solar System. It is named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus , the father of Cronus and grandfather of Zeus...

. It was discovered by Mark Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer

Jack J. Lissauer

Jack Jonathan Lissauer is an American research scientist who has worked for the NASA's Ames Research Center since 1996. He is a science co-investigator on the Kepler space telescope mission.-Biography:...

 in 2003 using the Hubble Space Telescope

Hubble Space Telescope

The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...

. It was named after a character in William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...

's play Timon of Athens

Timon of Athens

The Life of Timon of Athens is a play by William Shakespeare about the fortunes of an Athenian named Timon , generally regarded as one of his most obscure and difficult works...

.

It is the smallest of inner Uranian satellites, crudely estimated to be only about 18 km in diameter. {Table at right states radius.} This and the dark surface made it too dim to be detected by the Voyager 2

Voyager 2

The Voyager 2 spacecraft is a 722-kilogram space probe launched by NASA on August 20, 1977 to study the outer Solar System and eventually interstellar space...

cameras during its Uranus flyby in 1986.

The orbit of Cupid differs only 863 km from the orbit of the larger moon Belinda

Belinda (moon)

- External links :* by *...

. Unlike Mab

Mab (moon)

Mab , or Uranus XXVI , is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered by Mark R. Showalter and Jack J. Lissauer in 2003 using the Hubble Space Telescope...

 and Perdita

Perdita (moon)

Perdita is an inner satellite of Uranus. Perdita's discovery was complicated. The first photographs of Perdita were taken by the Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1986, but it was not recognized from the photographs for more than a decade. In 1999, the moon was noticed by Erich Karkoschka and reported...

, Uranian satellites also discovered in 2003, it does not seem to be perturbed

Perturbation (astronomy)

Perturbation is a term used in astronomy in connection with descriptions of the complex motion of a massive body which is subject to appreciable gravitational effects from more than one other massive body....

.

Following its discovery, Cupid was given the temporary designation S/2003 U 2. It is also designated Uranus XXVII.

It should not be confused with the asteroid

Asteroid

Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...

 763 Cupido

763 Cupido

-External links:*...

.

External links

• Hubble Uncovers Smallest Moons Yet Seen Around Uranus – Hubble Space Telescope news release (25 September 2003)