This began in 1975 when the International Astronomical Union's (IAU) Task Group for Outer Solar System Nomenclature granted names to satellites V–XIII, thus creating a formal naming process for any future satellites discovered. The other moons, in the majority of astronomical literature, were simply labeled by their Roman numeral (i.e. Jupiter V) was not so named until an unofficial convention took place in 1892, a name that was first used by the French astronomer Camille Flammarion. Though the Galilean moons were named shortly after their discovery in 1610, the names of Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto fell out of favor until the 20th century. Since 2003, 16 additional moons have been discovered but not yet named, bringing the total number of known moons of Jupiter to 67. By the time Voyager space probes reached Jupiter around 1979, 13 moons had been discovered, while Voyager herself discovered an additional three – Metis, Adrastea, and Thebe.īetween October 1999 and February 2003, researchers using sensitive ground-based detectors found and later named another 34 moons, most of which were discovered by a team led by Scott S. Himalia was discovered in 1904, Elara in 1905, Pasiphaë in 1908, Sinope in 1914, Lysithea and Carme in 1938, Ananke in 1951, and Leda in 1974. In fact, it was not until the 20th century, and with the aid of telescopic photography and other refinements, that most of the Jovian satellites began to be discovered. Hence, the moons of Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto were designated as Jupiter I, II, III, and IV, respectively.Īfter Galileo made the first recorded discovery of the Main Group, no additional satellites were discovered for almost three centuries – not until E. In accordance with this scheme, moons are assigned numbers based on their proximity to their parent planet and increase with distance. Galileo steadfastly refused to use Marius' names and instead invented the numbering scheme that is still used today, alongside proper moon names. In his treatise titled Mundus Jovialis ("The World of Jupiter", published in 1614) he named them Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. At the behest of Johannes Kepler, he named the moons after the lovers of Zues (the Greek equivalent of Jupiter). However, German astronomer Simon Marius had independently discovered these moons at the same time as Galileo. The discovery was announced in the Sidereus Nuncius ("Starry Messenger"), which was published in Venice in March 1610. At Cosimo's suggestion, Galileo changed the name to Medicea Sidera ("the Medician stars"), honouring the Medici family. Seeking the patronage of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo de Medici, Galileo initially sought permission to name the moons the "Cosmica Sidera" (or Cosimo's Stars). More importantly, by showing that planets other than Earth had their own system of satellites, Galileo dealt a significant blow to the Ptolemaic model of the universe, which was still widely accepted. These discoveries proved the importance of using the telescope to view celestial objects that had previously remained unseen. In time, he realized that these four bodies did not behave like fixed stars, and were in fact objects that orbited Jupiter. However, between January and March of 1610, he continued to observe them, and noted a fourth body as well. In 1610, he made the first recorded discovery of moons orbiting Jupiter, which later came to be known as the Galilean Moons.Īt the time, he observed only three objects, which he believed to be fixed stars. Using a telescope of his own design, which allowed for 20 x normal magnification, Galileo Galilei was able to make the first observations of celestial bodies that were not visible to the naked eye. Beyond them, there are the many Irregular Satellites that circle the planet, along with its debris rings. Together with the smaller Inner Group, they make up Jupiter's Regular Satellites. First, there are the largest moons known as the Galileans, or Main Group. The moons of Jupiter are so numerous and so diverse that they are broken down into several groups.
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