New Moon Discovered Orbiting Uranus Using NASA’s Webb Telescope - NASA Science
science.nasa.gov
Using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, a team led by the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has identified a previously unknown moon orbiting Uranus,
  • WhatAmLemmy@lemmy.worldEnglish
    24·
    4 days ago

    One 10 kms in diameter.

    At what size does it stop being considered a moon and start being considered space debris?

    I find it rather ridiculous that pluto isn’t a planet but this is a moon.

    • glimse@lemmy.world
      6·
      4 days ago

      Apparently there is no established size requirement

      There is no established lower limit on what is considered a “moon”. Every natural celestial body with an identified orbit around a planet of the Solar System, some as small as a kilometer across, has been considered a moon, though objects a tenth that size within Saturn’s rings, which have not been directly observed, have been called moonlets. Small asteroid moons (natural satellites of asteroids), such as Dactyl, have also been called moonlets.

    • FundMECFS@anarchist.nexusEnglish
      3·
      4 days ago

      Yeah I agree. Our moon is one of the largest in the solar system, and it feels like the moon count for the solar system is inflated due to some that are well pretty small.