Paaliaq

Paaliaq (pronounced /ˈpɑːli.ɑːk/ PAH-lee-ahk) is a prograde irregular satellite of Saturn. It was discovered by Brett J. Gladman, John J. Kavelaars, Jean-Marc Petit, Hans Scholl, Matthew J. Holman, Brian G. Marsden, Philip D. Nicholson and Joseph A. Burns in early October 2000[5][6], and given the temporary designation S/2000 S 2. It was named in August 2003 after a fictional shaman in the book The Curse of the Shaman, written by Michael Kusugak, who supplied Kavelaars with the names of giants from Inuit mythology that were used for other Saturnian moons.

Paaliaq is thought to be about 22 kilometres in diameter, and orbits Saturn at an average distance of 15.2 Gm in 687 days. It is a member of the Inuit group of irregular satellites. It also has a proximity with 9 other moons reaching up to ten miles from each.

Together with Kiviuq and Siarnaq, Paaliaq displays light-red colours and similar infrared spectrum, further supporting the thesis of a possible common origin of the Inuit group in the break-up of a larger body[4][7].

References

1. ^ Discovery Circumstances (JPL)
2. ^ Mean orbital parameters from NASA JPL
3. ^ a b Scott Sheppard pages
4. ^ a b c Grav, T.; and Bauer, J.; A deeper look at the colors of Saturnian irregular satellites
5. ^ IAUC 7512: S/2000 S 1 and S/2000 S 2 October 25, 2000 (discovery)
6. ^ MPEC 2000-Y15: S/2000 S 1, S/2000 S 2, S/2000 S 7, S/2000 S 8, S/2000 S 9 December 19, 2000 (discovery and ephemeris)
7. ^ Gladman, B. J.; Nicholson, P. D.; Burns, J. A.; Kavelaars, J. J.; Marsden, B. G.; Holman, M. J.; Grav, T.; Hergenrother, C. W.; Petit, J.-M.; Jacobson, R. A.; and Gray, W. J.; Discovery of 12 satellites of Saturn exhibiting orbital clustering, Nature, 412 (July 12, 2001), pp. 163–166

* Ephemeris IAU-MPC NSES

External links

* David Jewitt pages
* Scott Sheppard pages