Jupiter now has most moons in solar system; beats Saturn
Jupiter has surpassed Saturn to become the planet with the most moons in the solar system. Scientists recently discovered 12 new moons orbiting the giant planet. The dozen new moons represent a 15% increase in the planet's known moons, bringing up the total from 80 to 92. Saturn, on the other hand, currently has 83 documented moons.
Why does this story matter?
Along with being the most massive planet in our solar system, Jupiter now has another title of honor. Up until 2017, Jupiter had 67 moons on record and the number grew over the years thanks to new findings. However, the gas giant may not get to keep the new title for long since scientists are also investigating the presence of more moons around Saturn.
The moons were discovered based on observations made between 2021-2022
The newly discovered Jovian moons were based on observations made between 2021 and 2022 by Scott Sheppard, an astronomer at the Carnegie Institute for Science, and his team. The delay between observing the new moons and confirming their identity arises because the astronomers had to track the rocks for a full orbit in order to make sure they were orbiting Jupiter.
Follow-up investigations were made using the Magellan 6.5-meter Telescope
Sheppard and his team found the newly discovered Jovian moons using the Subaru Telescope at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan in Hawaii and the Victor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. To confirm the identity of the moons, the researchers carried out follow-up observations using the Magellan 6.5-meter Telescope at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile.
Upcoming missions could shed light on the newly discovered moons
Saturn and Jupiter's moons are considered to be fragments of larger satellites that broke apart due to asteroid strikes or impacts of other moons. The upcoming ESA's JUICE mission and NASA's Europa Clipper which will perform flybys of Jupiter could shed more light on the newly discovered Jovian moons. The missions are set to take off in April and October of 2024, respectively.
The new Jovian moons measure over 3,280 feet across
The newly discovered Jovian moons will be named by the Minor Planet Center (MPC) operated by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. The moons measure more than 3,280 feet wide, while about half of them are larger than 4,920 feet. They circle Jupiter far from its surface, taking more than 340 Earth days to complete an orbit of the gas giant.
Nine of the 12 new Jovian moons are particularly distant
Among the 12 new Jovian moons, nine are particularly distant. According to the MPC, these nine moons take more than 550 days for an orbit. These moons are also comparatively smaller. Five of the nine distant moons are estimated to have diameters greater than 8 kilometers. These nine moons also have retrograde orbits, meaning they circle Jupiter in the opposite direction of its rotation.
The other moons have prograde orbits
The retrograde orbits suggest these distant moons might have been trapped due to the strong gravitational influence exhibited by Jupiter. Meanwhile, the rest of the newly found moons have prograde orbits, the same direction as the planet's rotation. This suggests that they formed around Jupiter.
