Moonlet

The 400-meter moonlet Earhart in Saturn's A Ring, just outside the Encke Gap.

Another image of Earhart

Another moonlet named Bleriot

A moonlet named Santos-Dumont

A moonlet temporarily named S/2010 S 2

A moonlet, minor moon, minor natural satellite or minor satellite is a particularly small natural satellite orbiting a planet, dwarf planet or other minor planet. Three different types of small moons have been called moonlets:

• A belt of objects embedded in a planetary ring, as in Saturn's A Ring or S/2009 S 1 in the B Ring ("propeller" moonlets)^[1][2] or in Saturn's F Ring.^[3]
• Occasionally for asteroid moons, such as the moons of 87 Sylvia.^[4]
• Subsatellites.^[5]

See also

• Minor-planet moon
• Natural satellite
• Ring system

References

1. Matthew S. Tiscareno; et al. (2006). "100-metre-diameter moonlets in Saturn's A ring from observations of 'propeller' structures". Nature. 440 (7084): 648–650. Bibcode:2006Natur.440..648T. doi:10.1038/nature04581. PMID 16572165.
2. Miodrag Sremčević; et al. (2007). "A belt of moonlets in Saturn's A ring". Nature. 449 (7165): 1019–1021. Bibcode:2007Natur.449.1019S. doi:10.1038/nature06224. PMID 17960236.
3. Carl D. Murray; et al. (June 5, 2008). "The determination of the structure of Saturn's F ring by nearby moonlets". Nature. The Science and Technology Facilities Council. 453 (7196): 739–44. Bibcode:2008Natur.453..739M. doi:10.1038/nature06999. PMID 18528389.
4. F. Marchis; et al. (2005). "Discovery of the triple asteroidal system 87 Sylvia". Nature. 436 (7052): 822–4. Bibcode:2005Natur.436..822M. doi:10.1038/nature04018. PMID 16094362.
5. Robert Walker (17 April 2015). "Can Moons Have Moonlets? Or Rings? Moonlets Of Pluto's Moons?". Science 2.0. Retrieved 9 April 2016.

Further reading

• Google Book Search for "moonlet"