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The Moons of Our Solar System

Discover the fascinating moons of our solar system! Learn about Earth's unique moon, Mars' mysterious Phobos and Deimos, Jupiter's Galilean Satellites, Saturn's diverse moons, Uranus' icy satellites, Neptune's enigmatic moons, and Pluto's Charon, Nix, and Hydra. Explore their features, sizes, and intriguing facts in this cosmic journey.

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The Moons of Our Solar System

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  1. The Moons of Our Solar System

  2. How many moons are in our solar system? 1? 9? 61? 159? 159 and counting!

  3. Moons of the Inner Planets Mercury = 0 Venus = 0 Earth = 1, The Moon Mars = 2, Phobos & Deimos

  4. Moons of the Outer Planets Jupiter = 63, including Callisto, Io, Europa, Ganymede Saturn = 56, including Titan, Enceladus, Dione, Pan Uranus = 27, including Ariel, Titania, Puck, Oberon Neptune = 13, including Triton, Galatea, Larissa Pluto = 3, Charon, Nix, Hydra

  5. Comparing the Moons with Earth

  6. The Earth’s Moon • 384,403 km (238,857 mi) from Earth & 3,476 km (2,160 mi) in diameter • 27 days, 7 hours, 43 minutes for rotation and revolution around the Earth • Earth’s gravity keeps the same face of the moon permanently turned toward us

  7. The Earth’s Moon • It’s the only other place in the Solar System that humans have visited. • Recently, water ice was discovered at the poles underneath the dusty, cratered surface • A “blue moon” is a second full moon in 1 month, & occurs every few years The Earth’s Moon along with Jupiter & 4 of its moons

  8. The Moons of Mars • Mars has 2 moons: Phobos & Deimos • In Greek, Phobos means “fear” & Deimos means “dread”; they are the sons of Mars, the god of war • These moons are heavily cratered & probably captured objects

  9. The Moons of Mars • Phobos is 27 km (17 mi) wide and completes its orbit of Mars in 8 hours • Deimos, at 14 km (9 mi), is one of the smallest moons in the Solar System Phobos Deimos

  10. The Moons of Jupiter • Jupiter has 63 moons & thousands of small objects orbiting it • Scientists refer to it as a “mini Solar System” Jupiter with its moon, Io

  11. The Moons of Jupiter • In 1610, Galileo was the first person to discover the largest moons of Jupiter: Ganymede, Callisto, Io, and Europa • Since then, several spacecraft have examined these “Galilean Satellites” closely Ganymede Callisto Io Europa

  12. The Moons of Saturn • Saturn has 56 moons • The Cassini spacecraft discovered 12 new moons orbiting the planet in 2005 alone Cassini spacecraft Saturn

  13. The Moons of Saturn • Saturn’s moons vary greatly in size & shape • Titan, the largest moon, contains ingredients that one day may nurture life!

  14. The Moons of Uranus • Uranus has 27 moons • Many of them are icy, without an atmosphere or magnetosphere The rings of Uranus and its many moons

  15. The Moons of Uranus • The 5 largest were discovered in the 19th and 20th centuries: Titania, Oberon, Umbriel, Ariel & Miranda Titania Oberon Umbriel Ariel Miranda (images not to scale)

  16. The Moons of Neptune • Neptune has 13 moons, 3 of which were discovered in 2002, 2 more in 2003 • In 1989, Voyager 2 discovered 6 moons not visible from Earth • All of Neptune’s moons are composed of rock & ice, but little else is known about them

  17. The Moons of Neptune Nereid Proteus • Neptune has 3 larger moons: Triton, Nereid & Proteus • Triton is the only moon in the solar system with a retrograde orbit, and 1 of 3 with an atmosphere Triton Images from Voyager 2 in 1989

  18. The Moons of Pluto • Pluto has 3 moons: Charon, Nix, and Hydra • Charon and Pluto have a mutually synchronous orbit, meaning they always show the same face to each other • For the Greeks, Charon was the boatman who carried dead souls to the underworld, ruled by Pluto Pluto Charon

  19. The Moons of Pluto • At 1,186 km (737 mi), Charon’s diameter is little more than half of Pluto’s; no other moon in our solar system is so close in size to its planet • Charon appears to be covered by water ice, differing from Pluto’s surface of frozen nitrogen, methane & carbon dioxide Hubble Space Telescope image of Pluto (left) & Charon

  20. The Moons of Pluto • In November 2005, astronomers discovered two new moons of Pluto: Nix and Hydra. Both moons are much farther away from Pluto than Charon, and many times smaller. • Nix is named after the Greek goddess of night, Charon’s mother. Hydra is a beast that guarded Pluto’s underworld.

  21. Moons of Our Solar System Earth is not the only planet with a moon. At least 159 moons with craters, volcanoes & other spectacular features exist in our solar system. Which ones are your favorites?

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