Metis (moon)

Metis
Image taken by Galileo's Solid State Imager between November 1996 and June 1997
Discovery
Discovered byS. Synnott
Discovery date4 March 1979
Designations
Pronunciation/ˈmtəs/[1]
Named after
Μήτις Mētis
AdjectivesMetidian, Metidean /mɛˈtɪdiən/
Orbital characteristics
Periapsis127974 km[a]
Apoapsis128026 km[a]
Mean orbit radius
128000 km (1.792 RJ)[2][3]
Eccentricity0.0002[2][3]
0.294780 d (7 h, 4.5 min)[2][3]
31.501 km/s[a]
Inclination0.06° (to Jupiter's equator)[2][3]
Satellite ofJupiter
Physical characteristics[4]
Dimensions60 km × 40 km × 34 km
21.5±2.0 km
≈ 6200 km2[a]
Volume≈ 42700 km3[a]
Mass6.4×1016 kg[a]
Mean density
1.5 g/cm3
0.8 cm/s2 (average)
synchronous
zero
Albedo0.061±0.003[5]
Temperature≈ 123 K

Metis /ˈmtəs/, also known as Jupiter XVI, is the innermost known moon of Jupiter. It was discovered in 1979 in images taken by Voyager 1, and was named in 1983 after the Titaness Metis, the first wife of Zeus and the mother of Athena. Additional observations made between early 1996 and September 2003 by the Galileo spacecraft allowed its surface to be imaged.

Metis is tidally locked to Jupiter, and its shape is strongly asymmetrical, with the largest diameter being almost twice as large as the smallest one. It is also one of the two moons known to orbit Jupiter in less than the length of Jupiter's day, the other being Adrastea. It orbits within the main ring of Jupiter, and is thought to be a major contributor of ring material.

  1. ^ Noah Webster (188). A Practical Dictionary of the English Language.
  2. ^ a b c d Evans Porco et al. 2002.
  3. ^ a b c d Burns Simonelli et al. 2004.
  4. ^ Thomas Burns et al. 1998.
  5. ^ Simonelli Rossier et al. 2000.


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