Deimos: A Small Martian Moon
Explanation:
Mars has two tiny moons,
Phobos and
Deimos.
Pictured above is
Deimos, the smaller moon of Mars.
In fact,
Deimos is one of the smallest known moons in the
Solar System measuring only nine miles across.
The diminutive Martian moons were discovered in 1877 by
Asaph Hall,
an
American astronomer
working at the
US Naval Observatory
in
Washington D.C.
The existence of two Martian moons was predicted around 1610 by
Johannes Kepler,
the astronomer who derived the
laws of planetary motion.
In this case,
Kepler's prediction was not based on scientific principles, but
his writings and ideas were so influential that the two Martian moons are discussed
in works of fiction such as
Jonathan Swift's
Gulliver's Travels,
written in 1726, over 150 years before their
actual discovery.
News
on the NASA Mars Landings
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
