Internet Encyclopedia of Science
PLANETS & MOONS
A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z

                   • HOME
• ABOUT
• CATEGORIES
• COPYRIGHT
• NEWSLETTER

  



Larissa


Larissa
The fifth moon of Neptune in order from the planet. Larissa was discovered in 1981 by the American space engineer Harold Reitsema and his colleagues from ground-based stellar occultation observations, although the first (and so far only) images of it were obtained in 1989 by Voyager 2. It is named after a lover of Poseidon (Neptune) in Greek mythology and is also known as Neptune VII.

Like the five other inner moons of Neptune studied during Voyager's flyby, Larissa is among the darkest objects in the solar system. It is irregular in shape and appears to be heavily cratered. Theory suggests that Larissa, along with the other satellites inward of Triton, is a rubble pile re-accreted from fragments of Neptune's original satellites, which were smashed up by perturbations from Triton soon after that moon's capture into an eccentric initial orbit


discovery 1981, Reitsema et al
semimajor axis 73,548 km (45,710 miles)
diameter 216×204×164 km (134×127×102 miles)
orbital period 0.555 days (13 hr 19 min.)
orbital eccentricity 0.0014
orbital inclination 0.25°
visual albedo 0.09


Related entry

   • Neptune, moons


Related category

   • PLANETS AND MOONS


Also on this site:

Encyclopedia of Alternative Energy & Sustainable Living
Encyclopedia of History




BACK TO TOP