Moons of Uranus -Images- Miranda, Ariel, Titania, Umbriel x2 and Oberon x2 Uranus has 27 moons, which is by no means the most of any planet in the Solar System. Jupiter holds that record with 63 moons. One unique thing about Uranus’ moons is that they are all named after characters from works by William Shakespeare or by Alexander Pope. The other satellites are named after figures from Greek or roman mythology. John Herschel, the son of the astronomer who discovered the first two moons of Uranus, was the one who started naming the moons. He named them after magical spirits from English literature because he felt that Uranus – the god of the air – would be attended by different spirits of the air. However, astronomers who followed started naming the moons after different characters from the works of literature rather than just fairies and sprites. Read more: universetoday/52072/moons-of-uranus/#ixzz2vc118NUy
Posted on: Tue, 11 Mar 2014 01:12:44 +0000
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