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Ophelia (moon)
Encyclopedia
Ophelia is a moon of Uranus
. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2
on January 20, 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 8. It was not seen until the Hubble Space Telescope
recovered it in 2003. Ophelia was named after the daughter of Polonius
, Ophelia, in William Shakespeare
's play Hamlet
. It is also designated Uranus VII.
Other than its orbit, radius of 21 km and geometric albedo of 0.08 virtually nothing is known about it. At the Voyager 2
images Ophelia appears as an elongated object, the major axis pointing towards Uranus. The ratio of axes of the Ophelia's prolate spheroid is 0.7 ± 0.3.
Ophelia acts as the outer shepherd satellite for Uranus' Epsilon ring
. The orbit of Ophelia is within the synchronous orbit radius of Uranus, and therefore the moon is slowly decaying due to tidal force
s.
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 from the images taken by 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...
on January 20, 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 8. It was not seen until 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...
recovered it in 2003. Ophelia was named after the daughter of Polonius
Polonius
Polonius is a character in William Shakespeare's Hamlet. He is King Claudius's chief counsellor, and the father of Ophelia and Laertes. Polonius connives with Claudius to spy on Hamlet...
, Ophelia, 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 Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
. It is also designated Uranus VII.
Other than its orbit, radius of 21 km and geometric albedo of 0.08 virtually nothing is known about it. At 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...
images Ophelia appears as an elongated object, the major axis pointing towards Uranus. The ratio of axes of the Ophelia's prolate spheroid is 0.7 ± 0.3.
Ophelia acts as the outer shepherd satellite for Uranus' Epsilon ring
Rings of Uranus
The planet Uranus has a system of rings intermediate in complexity between the more extensive set around Saturn and the simpler systems around Jupiter and Neptune. The rings of Uranus were discovered on March 10, 1977, by James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham, and Douglas J. Mink...
. The orbit of Ophelia is within the synchronous orbit radius of Uranus, and therefore the moon is slowly decaying due to tidal force
Tidal force
The tidal force is a secondary effect of the force of gravity and is responsible for the tides. It arises because the gravitational force per unit mass exerted on one body by a second body is not constant across its diameter, the side nearest to the second being more attracted by it than the side...
s.
External links
- Ophelia Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
- Uranus' Known Satellites (by Scott S. SheppardScott S. SheppardScott S. Sheppard is an astronomer in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism at the Carnegie Institution for Science. Starting as a graduate student at the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii, he was credited with the discovery of many small moons of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and...
)