S/2016 J 4 is a small outer natural satellite of Jupiter discovered by Scott S. Sheppard on 9 March 2016, using the 6.5-meter Magellan-Baade Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, Chile. It was announced by the Minor Planet Center on 24 January 2023, after observations were collected over a long enough time span to confirm the satellite's orbit.[1]
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Scott S. Sheppard |
| Discovery site | Las Campanas Obs. |
| Discovery date | 9 March 2016 |
| Orbital characteristics[1][2] | |
| Epoch 25 February 2023 (JD 2460000.5) | |
| Observation arc | 6.78 yr (2,475 d) |
| Earliest precovery date | 5 February 2016 |
| 0.1581850 AU (23,664,140 km) | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1986458 |
| –2.04 yr (–743.69 days) | |
| 138.36439° | |
| 0° 29m 2.661s / day | |
| Inclination | 146.25507° (to ecliptic) |
| 309.09022° | |
| 302.78410° | |
| Satellite of | Jupiter |
| Group | Pasiphae group |
| Physical characteristics | |
| ≈1 km[3] | |
| 24.0[3] | |
| 17.3[1] | |
S/2016 J 4 is part of the Pasiphae group, a dispersed cluster of distant retrograde irregular moons of Jupiter that follow similar orbits to Pasiphae at semi-major axes between 22–25 million km (14–16 million mi), orbital eccentricities between 0.2–0.6, and inclinations between 140–160°.[3] It has a diameter of about 1 km (0.62 mi) for an absolute magnitude of 17.3, making it one of Jupiter's smallest known moons.[3]
References
edit- ^ a b c d "MPEC 2023-B96 : S/2016 J 4". Minor Planet Electronic Circulars. Minor Planet Center. 24 January 2023. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
- ^ "Planetary Satellite Discovery Circumstances". JPL Solar System Dynamics. NASA. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
- ^ a b c d Sheppard, Scott S. "Moons of Jupiter". Earth & Planets Laboratory. Carnegie Institution for Science. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
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