# Neptune: +5 moons



## Brian G Turner (Aug 25, 2004)

Five new satellites - and one candidate moon - have been discovered orbiting the giant planet Neptune, bringing its tally of moons to 13.   Two orbit in the same direction as the planet rotates, while the orbits of the others are opposite to Neptune's spin. 

  The tiny outer satellites are probably captured asteroids, astronomers say. 

  Cataclysmic events connected to the capture of Neptune's moon Triton were thought to have destroyed any outer satellites the planet once had. 

   The new moons - named S/2002 N1 to N4; and S/2003 N1 - are in eccentric, tilted orbits. They are all between 30km and 50km in diameter. 

  An international team of astronomers searched for the satellites between 2001 and 2003 using the 4m Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory and the 3.6m Canada-France-Hawaii telescope.


 More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3578210.stm


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## dwndrgn (Aug 25, 2004)

So that's what all that rambling Cat Stevens did about Moon Shadows was about  

Just kidding.  So here's what just popped into my head, if those are asteroids that were trapped by Neptune's spin, what happens if our pull drags in an asteroid or two and it messes with the orbit of our lonely little moon?  Wouldn't that effect the moon's pull on us?  Just a' ponderin'...


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## Brian G Turner (Aug 25, 2004)

It would probably have to be a big planetoid to mess with us. 

 I know I put "moons" in the title, but erally were talking about fairly small lumps of rock.


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## dwndrgn (Aug 25, 2004)

Oh, I understand that.  It just made me think a bit.


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## Hypes (Aug 26, 2004)

The moon is actually the result of such an event - a planet stalking us, but at some point colliding into our planet when the surface was not completely solid and the debris of the impact scattered to form a belt around the planet. Throughout the years, this gathered gravity and clustered together to form the closest heavenly body to Earth today.


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## Brian G Turner (Aug 26, 2004)

As per the article in New Scientist last week.


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## Hypes (Aug 28, 2004)

Yes. Brilliant read.


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