Discovery [1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by | Scott S. Sheppard |
Discovery site | Las Campanas Obs. |
Discovery date | 12 August 2021 |
Orbital characteristics [1] [2] | |
Epoch 25 February 2023 ( JD 2460000.5) | |
Observation arc | 1.06 yr (387 d) |
0.1413164 AU (21,140,630 km) | |
Eccentricity | 0.3413342 |
–1.72 yr (–627.96 days) | |
320.08120 ° | |
0° 34m 23.822s / day | |
Inclination | 150.11397° (to ecliptic) |
340.99094° | |
71.71210° | |
Satellite of | Jupiter |
Group | Ananke group |
Physical characteristics | |
Mean diameter | ≈1 km [3] |
24.0 [3] | |
17.3 [1] | |
S/2021 J 2 is a small outer natural satellite of Jupiter discovered by Scott S. Sheppard on 12 August 2021, using the 6.5-meter Magellan-Baade Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, Chile. It was announced by the Minor Planet Center on 19 January 2023, after observations were collected over a long enough time span to confirm the satellite's orbit. [1]
S/2021 J 2 is part of the Ananke group, a cluster of retrograde irregular moons of Jupiter that follow similar orbits to Ananke at semi-major axes between 19–22 million km (12–14 million mi), orbital eccentricities between 0.1–0.4, and inclinations between 139–155°. [3] It has a diameter of about 1 km (0.62 mi) for an absolute magnitude of 17.3, making it one of Jupiter's smallest known moons. [3]