Astronomy:Bleriot (moonlet)
 Cassini image directed at Bleriot. | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Cassini Imaging Team |
| Discovery date | 2005 |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Eccentricity | ≈ 0.000 |
| Inclination | ≈ 0.0 |
| Satellite of | Saturn |
| Group | A ring moonlet |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mean diameter | 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) |
| Rotation period | assumed synchronous |
Bleriot (or Blériot), is the informal name for a propeller moonlet within Saturn's A Ring. The moon is about 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) across, making it the largest of these propeller moonlets. It has been tracked by the Cassini Imaging Team for the past decade.[1][2]
Bleriot has been subject to some scientific studies due to its large size and has helped scientists improve their understanding the interactions between objects within Saturn's rings.[3][4] The orbit of Bleriot has some anomalies such as that it sometimes is much further behind or ahead than is predicted to be.[3][5]
The name comes from French aviator Louis Blériot, who was the first person to fly across the English Channel.[2][3]
Due to its small size, Bleriot cannot be directly imaged, it can only be noticed by the "propeller-shaped" disturbances it creates around it.[6]
See also
- Peggy (moonlet)
- S/2009 S 1
References
- ↑ "My God. It's full of propellers." (in en-US). 2017-05-10. https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/my-god-its-full-propellers.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Catalog Page for PIA21447". https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21447.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "NASA Cassini Images: Tiny Moons In Saturn's Rings" (in en-US). 2017-05-11. https://www.ibtimes.com/nasa-cassini-images-tiny-moons-saturns-rings-create-propeller-shapes-2537723.
- ↑ "Catalog Page for PIA12792". https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA12792.
- ↑ Beatty, J. Keally (2010-07-16). "Strange Twists in Saturn's Rings". https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/strange-twists-insaturnsrings/.
- ↑ Seiß, Martin; Albers, Nicole; Sremčević, Miodrag; Schmidt, Jürgen; Salo, Heikki; Seiler, Michael; Hoffmann, Holger; Spahn, Frank (2018-12-12). "Hydrodynamic Simulations of Moonlet-induced Propellers in Saturn's Rings: Application to Blériot". The Astronomical Journal 157 (1): 6. doi:10.3847/1538-3881/aaed44. ISSN 1538-3881.
.jpg)
 |  |
