Belinda (moon)

Belinda is an inner satellite of the planet Uranus. Belinda was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2 on 13 January 1986 and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 5.[7] It is named after the heroine of Alexander Pope's The Rape of the Lock. It is also designated Uranus XIV.[8]

Belinda
Image of Belinda acquired by Voyager 2
Belinda viewed by Voyager 2 in 1986
Discovery
Discovered byStephen P. Synnott / Voyager 2
Discovery dateJanuary 13, 1986
Designations
Designation
Uranus XIV
Pronunciation/bəˈlɪndə/[1]
AdjectivesBelindian
Orbital characteristics
Mean orbit radius
75,255.613 ± 0.057 km[2]
Eccentricity0.00007 ± 0.000073[2]
0.623527470 ± 0.000000017 d[2]
Inclination0.03063 ± 0.028° (to Uranus' equator)[2]
Satellite ofUranus
Physical characteristics
Dimensions128 × 64 × 64 km[3]
Mean radius
40.3 ± 8 km[3][4][5]
~25,000 km2 [lower-alpha 1]
Volume~380,000 km3 [lower-alpha 1]
Mass~3.6×1017 kg[lower-alpha 1]
Mean density
~1.3 g/cm3 (assumed)[4]
~0.014 m/s2 [lower-alpha 1]
~0.034 km/s[lower-alpha 1]
synchronous[3]
zero[3]
Albedo0.08 ± 0.01[6]
Temperature~64 K[lower-alpha 1]

    Belinda belongs to the Portia group of satellites, which also includes Bianca, Cressida, Desdemona, Portia, Juliet, Cupid, Rosalind and Perdita.[6] These satellites have similar orbits and photometric properties.[6] Other than its orbit,[2] radius of 45 km[3] and geometric albedo of 0.08[6] virtually nothing is known about it.

    The Voyager 2 images show Belinda as an elongated object with its major axis pointing towards Uranus. The moon is very elongated, with its short axis 0.5 ± 0.1 times the long axis.[3] Its surface is grey in color.[3]

    The inner moon system is unstable over timescales of several millions of years. Belinda and Cupid will probably be the first pair of moons to collide, in 100,000 to 10 million years' time depending on the densities of the Portia-group satellites, due to resonant interactions with the much smaller Cupid.[9]

    See also

    References

    Explanatory notes

    1. Calculated on the basis of other parameters.

    Citations

    1. Benjamin Smith (1903) The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
    2. Jacobson 1998.
    3. Karkoschka, Voyager 2001.
    4. JPL Solar System Dynamics.
    5. Williams 2007.
    6. Karkoschka, Hubble 2001.
    7. IAUC 4164.
    8. USGS: Planet and Satellite Names and Discoverers.
    9. French, Robert S.; Showalter, Mark R. (August 2012). "Cupid is doomed: An analysis of the stability of the inner uranian satellites". Icarus. 220 (2): 911–921. arXiv:1408.2543. Bibcode:2012Icar..220..911F. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2012.06.031. S2CID 9708287.

    Sources

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