Buy Jupiter Trivia Quiz

Answer: Deimos

Asaph Hall discovered Deimos and Phobos, the two moons of Mars, in 1877. Deimos has an irregular shape with a mean radius of slightly under 4 miles. Its orbit, at about 14,580 miles, around Mars takes about 30 hours. Scientists suspect that both moons may have originated as captured asteroids.

Answer: Thebe

Stephen Synnott discovered Thebe in 1979. It is considered one of Jupiter's inner satellites and orbits Jupiter at a distance of about 138,000 miles. Thebe has a radius of about 31 miles. The same side of Thebe always faces towards Jupiter in its orbit of slightly over 16 hours.

Answer: Enceladus

Enceladus has a radius of about 310 miles. William Herschel discovered the moon in 1789 although relatively little was known about it until the later 20th century. There is a layer of ice on Enceladus which gives it lower than expected surface temperatures. Enceladus orbits Saturn in about 33 hours at a distance of about 147,000 miles.

Answer: Miranda

Miranda orbits Uranus at a distance of about 80,100 miles in about 34 hours. The moon was discovered by Gerard Kuiper in 1948. Like several other of the moons of Uranus, Miranda is named after a character from a Shakespearean play. It has a radius of about 146 miles.

Answer: Proteus

Proteus was not discovered until 1989, when it was observed by the Voyager 2 space probe. The moon has a radius of about 125 miles and a crater (Pharos) which has a radius of over 60 miles. In its orbit, at about 73,000 miles, Proteus always shows the same face to Neptune. Proteus orbits Neptune in about 27 hours.

Answer: Nix

Nix and Hydra, two of Pluto's moons, were both discovered in 2005 through use of the Hubble Space Telescope. Nix has a radius of about 15 miles. Nix is named for the Roman goddess of darkness and night. Nix orbits Pluto at a distance of about 30,000 miles over a period of about 25 days.

Answer: S/2015 (136472) 1

S/2015 (136472) 1 is a moon of the dwarf planet Makemake. It was discovered in 2015 through use of the Hubble Space Telescope. The moon has a radius of about 55 miles. S/2015 (136472) 1 has an orbital distance of at least 13,000 miles from Makemake and its orbit is at least 12 days.

Answer: Namaka

Namaka is a moon of the dwarf planet Haumea. In Hawaiian mythology, Namaka is the goddess of the sea. It was discovered in 2005 by a team including Michael E. Brown, Chad Trujillo, and David Rabinowitz. Namaka has a radius of about 53 miles. It is estimated to orbit Haumea at a distance of about 16,000 miles with an orbital period of about 18 days.

Answer: Dysnomia

Dysnomia is a moon of the dwarf planet Eris. It was discovered by Michael Brown in 2005. Dysnomia is estimated to have a radius of about 220 miles. It orbits Eris at a distance of about 23,000 miles over a period of about 16 days. The moon is named for the "daemon" of lawlessness and daughter of Eris.

Answer: Vanth

Vanth was discovered in 2005 by Michael Brown. It is a moon of the dwarf planet Orcus. In mythology, Vanth is a winged spirit who brings the deceased to the underworld. It has a radius of about 150 miles. Vanth orbits Orcus at a distance of about 5600 miles over a period of about 9.5 days.