Surtur (moon)

Surtur
Discovery
Discovered byScott S. Sheppard
David C. Jewitt
Jan T. Kleyna
Brian G. Marsden
Discovery date26 June 2006
Designations
Designation
Saturn XLVIII
Pronunciation/ˈsɜːrtər/[1]
Named after
Surt
S/2006 S 7
AdjectivesSurtian /ˈsɜːrtiən/[a]
Orbital characteristics[2]
22707000 km
Eccentricity0.451
−1297.7 days
Inclination177.5°
Satellite ofSaturn
GroupNorse group
Physical characteristics[3]
4 km
Albedo0.06 (assumed)
24.8
15.8

Surtur /ˈsɜːrtər/ or Saturn XLVIII (provisional designation S/2006 S 7) is a natural satellite of Saturn. Its discovery was announced by Scott S. Sheppard, David C. Jewitt, Jan Kleyna, and Brian G. Marsden on June 26, 2006 from observations taken between January and April 2006. It was named after Surt, a leader of the fire giants of Norse mythology.

Surtur is about 4 kilometres in diameter, and orbits Saturn at an average distance of 22.707 Mm in 1297.7 days. The Surtian orbit is retrograde, at an inclination of 177.5° to the ecliptic and with an eccentricity of 0.451.[2]

Notes

  1. ^ The oblique stem of the name is Surt. The -ur is the nominative case ending.

References

  1. ^ "Surt". Dictionary.com Unabridged (Online). n.d.
  2. ^ a b Sheppard, S. S. (2019). "Moons of Saturn, Carnegie Science, on line".
  3. ^ Denk, Tilmann; Mottola, Stefano; Tosi, Frederico; Bottke, William F.; Hamilton, Douglas P. (2018). "The Irregular Satellites of Saturn" (PDF). In Schenk, P.M.; Clark, R.N.; Howett, C.J.A.; Verbiscer, A.J.; Waite, J.H. (eds.). Enceladus and the Icy Moons of Saturn. Space Science Series. Vol. 322. Tucson, AZ: The University of Arizona Press. pp. 409–434. Bibcode:2018eims.book..409D. doi:10.2458/azu_uapress_9780816537075-ch020. ISBN 9780816537075.