Elara

Elara (pronounced /ˈɛlərə/ EL-ər-ə, or as in Greek Ελάρα) is a prograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine at Lick Observatory in 1905[1][2]. It is the eighth largest moon of Jupiter and is named after the mother by Zeus of the giant Tityus. [5]

Elara did not receive its present name until 1975; before then, it was simply known as Jupiter VII. It was sometimes called "Hera"[6] between 1955 and 1975.

Elara belongs to the Himalia group, five moons orbiting between 11 and 13 Gm from Jupiter at an inclination of about 27.5°.[3] Its orbital elements are as of January 2000. They are continuously changing due to Solar and planetary perturbations.

New Horizons encounter

In February and March 2007, the New Horizons spacecraft to Pluto captured Elara in several LORRI images from a distance of five million miles.

See also

* Jupiter's moons in fiction

References

1. ^ a b Perrine, C. D. (1905-02-27). "Satellites of Jupiter". Harvard College Observatory Bulletin 178. http://adsabs.harvard.edu//full/seri/BHarO/0178//0000001.000.html.
2. ^ a b Perrine, C. D. (1905). "The Seventh Satellite of Jupiter". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 17 (101): 62–63. http://adsabs.harvard.edu//full/seri/PASP./0017//0000062.000.html.
3. ^ a b c d e f Jacobson, R. A. (2000). "The orbits of outer Jovian satellites". Astronomical Journal 120: 2679–2686. doi:10.1086/316817.
4. ^ a b c d "Planetary Satellite Physical Parameters". JPL (Solar System Dynamics). 2009-04-03. http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/?sat_phys_par. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
5. ^ Marsden, B. G. (7 October 1974). "Satellites of Jupiter". IAUC Circular 2846. http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/iauc/02800/02846.html.
6. ^ Payne-Gaposchkin, Cecilia; Katherine Haramundanis (1970). Introduction to Astronomy. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. ISBN 0-134-78107-4.

External links

* Elara on 1998-08-15 03:21 UTC (Crédit : OHP/IMCCE/CNRS) / SkyView 23 47 09 -02 40 46
* HORIZONS Web-Interface
* Elara Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
* David Jewitt pages
* Jupiter's Known Satellites (by Scott S. Sheppard)

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