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Puck (moon)
Encyclopedia
Puck is an inner moon of Uranus
. It was discovered in December 1985 by the Voyager 2
spacecraft. The name Puck comes from Celtic mythology and English folklore. The orbit of Puck lies between the rings of Uranus
and the first of Uranus' large moons, Miranda
. Puck is approximately spherical in shape and has diameter of about 162 km. It has a dark heavily cratered surface, which shows spectral signs of water ice.
on 30 December 1985. It was given the temporary designation S/1985 U 1.
The moon was later named after the Puck who appears in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream
, a little sprite who travels around the globe at night with the fairies
. In Celtic mythology and English folklore, a Puck
is a mischievous sprite, imagined as an evil demon by Christians.
It is also designated Uranus XV.
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Puck is the largest of small inner moons of Uranus, which orbit inside the orbit of Miranda. It is intermediate in size between Portia
(the second largest inner moon) and Miranda
(the smallest of the five large classical moons). Puck's orbit is located between the rings of Uranus
and Miranda. Little is known about Puck aside from its orbit, radius of about 81 km, and geometric albedo
in the visible light of approximately 0.11.
Of the moons discovered by the Voyager 2 imaging team, only Puck was discovered early enough that the probe could be programmed to image it in some detail. Images showed that Puck has a shape of a slightly prolate spheroid
(ratio between axes is 0.97 ± 0.04). Its surface is heavily cratered and is grey in color. There are three named crater
s on the surface of Puck, the largest being about 45 km in diameter. Observations with Hubble Space Telescope
and large terrestrial telescopes found water ice absorption features in the spectrum of Puck.
Nothing is known about the internal structure of Puck. It is probably made of a mixture of water ice
with the dark material similar to that found in the rings. This dark material is probably made of rock
s or radiation
processed organic
s. The absence of craters with bright rays implies that Puck is not differentiated meaning that ice and non-ice components have not separated from each other forming a core and mantle
.
Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. It has the third-largest planetary radius and fourth-largest planetary mass in the Solar System. It is named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus , the father of Cronus and grandfather of Zeus...
. It was discovered in December 1985 by the Voyager 2
Voyager 2
The Voyager 2 spacecraft is a 722-kilogram space probe launched by NASA on August 20, 1977 to study the outer Solar System and eventually interstellar space...
spacecraft. The name Puck comes from Celtic mythology and English folklore. The orbit of Puck lies between the rings of Uranus
Rings of Uranus
The planet Uranus has a system of rings intermediate in complexity between the more extensive set around Saturn and the simpler systems around Jupiter and Neptune. The rings of Uranus were discovered on March 10, 1977, by James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham, and Douglas J. Mink...
and the first of Uranus' large moons, Miranda
Miranda (moon)
-External links:* at * at The Nine8 Planets* at Views of the Solar System* * from the...
. Puck is approximately spherical in shape and has diameter of about 162 km. It has a dark heavily cratered surface, which shows spectral signs of water ice.
Discovery and naming
Puck—the largest inner moon of Uranus—was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2Voyager 2
The Voyager 2 spacecraft is a 722-kilogram space probe launched by NASA on August 20, 1977 to study the outer Solar System and eventually interstellar space...
on 30 December 1985. It was given the temporary designation S/1985 U 1.
The moon was later named after the Puck who appears in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
, a little sprite who travels around the globe at night with the fairies
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
. In Celtic mythology and English folklore, a Puck
Puck (mythology)
In English folklore, Puck is a mythological fairy or mischievous nature sprite. Puck is also a generalised personification of land spirits. In more recent times, the figure of Robin Goodfellow is identified as a puck.-Etymology:...
is a mischievous sprite, imagined as an evil demon by Christians.
It is also designated Uranus XV.
Physical characteristics
Portia (moon)
Portia is an inner satellite of Uranus. It was discovered from the images taken by Voyager 2 on 3 January 1986, and was given the temporary designation S/1986 U 1. The moon is named after Portia, the heroine of William Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice...
(the second largest inner moon) and Miranda
Miranda (moon)
-External links:* at * at The Nine8 Planets* at Views of the Solar System* * from the...
(the smallest of the five large classical moons). Puck's orbit is located between the rings of Uranus
Rings of Uranus
The planet Uranus has a system of rings intermediate in complexity between the more extensive set around Saturn and the simpler systems around Jupiter and Neptune. The rings of Uranus were discovered on March 10, 1977, by James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham, and Douglas J. Mink...
and Miranda. Little is known about Puck aside from its orbit, radius of about 81 km, and geometric albedo
Albedo
Albedo , or reflection coefficient, is the diffuse reflectivity or reflecting power of a surface. It is defined as the ratio of reflected radiation from the surface to incident radiation upon it...
in the visible light of approximately 0.11.
Of the moons discovered by the Voyager 2 imaging team, only Puck was discovered early enough that the probe could be programmed to image it in some detail. Images showed that Puck has a shape of a slightly prolate spheroid
Spheroid
A spheroid, or ellipsoid of revolution is a quadric surface obtained by rotating an ellipse about one of its principal axes; in other words, an ellipsoid with two equal semi-diameters....
(ratio between axes is 0.97 ± 0.04). Its surface is heavily cratered and is grey in color. There are three named crater
Impact crater
In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with a larger body...
s on the surface of Puck, the largest being about 45 km in diameter. Observations with Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...
and large terrestrial telescopes found water ice absorption features in the spectrum of Puck.
Nothing is known about the internal structure of Puck. It is probably made of a mixture of water ice
Ice
Ice is water frozen into the solid state. Usually ice is the phase known as ice Ih, which is the most abundant of the varying solid phases on the Earth's surface. It can appear transparent or opaque bluish-white color, depending on the presence of impurities or air inclusions...
with the dark material similar to that found in the rings. This dark material is probably made of rock
Rock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
s or radiation
Radiation
In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...
processed organic
Organic compound
An organic compound is any member of a large class of gaseous, liquid, or solid chemical compounds whose molecules contain carbon. For historical reasons discussed below, a few types of carbon-containing compounds such as carbides, carbonates, simple oxides of carbon, and cyanides, as well as the...
s. The absence of craters with bright rays implies that Puck is not differentiated meaning that ice and non-ice components have not separated from each other forming a core and mantle
Mantle (geology)
The mantle is a part of a terrestrial planet or other rocky body large enough to have differentiation by density. The interior of the Earth, similar to the other terrestrial planets, is chemically divided into layers. The mantle is a highly viscous layer between the crust and the outer core....
.
See also
- Moons of Uranus
- Rings of UranusRings of UranusThe planet Uranus has a system of rings intermediate in complexity between the more extensive set around Saturn and the simpler systems around Jupiter and Neptune. The rings of Uranus were discovered on March 10, 1977, by James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham, and Douglas J. Mink...
- List of geological features on Puck