Prospero is a relatively small retrograde irregular satellite of Uranus discovered on 18 July 1999 by the astrophysicist Matthew Holman and his team, and given the provisional designation S/1999 U 3. Confirmed as Uranus XVIII it was named after the sorcerer Prospero in William Shakespeare's play The Tempest.
![]() Discovery image of Prospero, taken by the CFHT in July 1999 | |
Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | |
Discovery date | 18 July 1999 |
Designations | |
Designation | Uranus XVIII |
Pronunciation | /ˈprɒspɛroʊ/[1] |
Adjectives | Prosperonian /prɒspɛˈroʊniən/,[2] Prosperian /prɒˈspɪəriən/[3] |
Orbital characteristics | |
Mean orbit radius | 16,256,000 km[4][5] |
Eccentricity | 0.4448[5] |
1978.29 d | |
Inclination | 152°[4] (to the ecliptic)[4] |
Satellite of | Uranus |
Physical characteristics | |
25 km (estimate)[6] <50 km[7] | |
~8000 km2 (estimate) | |
Volume | ~65,000 km3 (estimate) |
Mass | ~8.5×1016 kg (estimate) |
Mean density | ~1.3 g/cm3 (assumed) |
~0.0063 m/s2 (estimate) | |
~0.021 km/s (estimate) | |
7.145±0.092 h[7] | |
? | |
Albedo | 0.04 (assumed)[6] |
Temperature | ~65 K (estimate) |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Prospero_discovery_image.gif/170px-Prospero_discovery_image.gif)
The orbital parameters suggest that it may belong to the same dynamic cluster as Sycorax and Setebos, suggesting common origin.[8] However, this suggestion does not appear to be supported by the observed colours. The satellite appears neutral (grey) in visible light (colour indices B−V=0.80, R−V=0.39),[9] similar to Setebos but different from Sycorax (which is light red).
See also
References
- Grav, Tommy; Holman, Matthew J.; Fraser, Wesley C. (20 September 2004). "Photometry of Irregular Satellites of Uranus and Neptune". The Astrophysical Journal. 613 (1): L77–L80. arXiv:astro-ph/0405605. Bibcode:2004ApJ...613L..77G. doi:10.1086/424997. S2CID 15706906.
- Sheppard, S. S.; Jewitt, D.; Kleyna, J. (2005). "An Ultradeep Survey for Irregular Satellites of Uranus: Limits to Completeness". The Astronomical Journal. 129 (1): 518–525. arXiv:astro-ph/0410059. Bibcode:2005AJ....129..518S. doi:10.1086/426329. S2CID 18688556.
External links
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