Ferdinand (pronounced /ˈfɜrdɨnænd/ FUR-də-nand) is the outermost retrograde irregular satellite of Uranus. It was discovered by Matthew J. Holman, John J. Kavelaars, Dan Milisavljevic, and Brett J. Gladman on August 13, 2001 and given the provisional designation S/2001 U 2.
Despite being seen again on September 21 and November 15 and even a year later on August 13 and September 5, 2002, it was eventually lost. It was finally recovered on September 24, 2003 by Scott S. Sheppard on images obtained by David C. Jewitt and himself on August 29-30 and September 20 of that year. Confirming observations were made by Holman on September 30.
Designated Uranus XXIV, it was named after the son of the King of Naples in William Shakespeare's play The Tempest.
Orbit
Retrograde irregular satellites of Uranus.
Ferdinand is the most distant known satellite of Uranus. It follows a retrograde, modestly inclined but highly eccentric orbit. The diagram illustrates the orbital parameters of the retrograde irregular satellites of Uranus (in polar co-ordinates) with the eccentricity of the orbits represented by the segments extending from the pericentre to the apocentre.
See also
* Uranus' natural satellites
References
1. ^ a b Daniel W. E. Green (2003-10-01). "IAUC 8213: S/2001 U 2, S/2002 N 4; C/2003 S4". IAU Circular. http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/iauc/08200/08213.html. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
2. ^ Jennifer Blue (2008-10-16). "Planet and Satellite Names and Discoverers". Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN). http://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/append7.html#UranianSystem. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
3. ^ Scott S. Sheppard. "New Satellites of Uranus Discovered in 2003". Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii. http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/~sheppard/satellites/uranus2003.html. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
4. ^ Jacobson, R.A. (2003) URA067 (2007-06-28). "Planetary Satellite Mean Orbital Parameters". JPL/NASA. http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/?sat_elem#uranus. Retrieved 2008-01-23.
5. ^ a b c Sheppard, Scott S.; David C. Jewitt, Jan Kleyna (2005). "An Ultradeep Survey for Irregular Satellites of Uranus: Limits to Completeness". The Astronomical Journal 129 (1): 518–525. http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0410059. Retrieved 20 October 2009. "Table 3 ... ri (km) ... 10 ... i Radius of satellite assuming a geometric albedo of 0.04.".
External links
* Ferdinand Profile by NASA's Solar System Exploration
* David Jewitt pages
* Uranus' Known Satellites (by Scott S. Sheppard)
* Ephemeris
see also: The Solar System
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