Eukelade
Moon of Jupiter
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Eukelade /juːˈkɛlədiː/, also known as Jupiter XLVII, is a retrograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by a team of astronomers from the University of Hawaiʻi led by Scott S. Sheppard in 2003, and received the temporary designation S/2003 J 1.[6][7][8]
Images of Eukelade taken by Scott Sheppard on 4 March 2003 | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Scott S. Sheppard et al. |
| Discovery date | 2003 |
| Designations | |
Designation | Jupiter XLVII |
| Pronunciation | /juːˈkɛlədiː/ |
Named after | Ευκελάδη Eykeladē |
| S/2003 J 1 | |
| Adjectives | Eukeladean /ˌjuːkɪləˈdiːən/ |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 2026-01-01 | |
| Observation arc | 19 years 2022-09-02 (last obs) |
| Periapsis | 14.3 million km |
| Apoapsis | 30.7 million km (2026-Jan-17)[2] |
| 22.5 million km | |
| Eccentricity | 0.363 |
| −689.2 days | |
| 170° | |
| Inclination | 165.2° |
| 206.3° | |
| 80.3° | |
| Satellite of | Jupiter |
| Group | Carme group |
| Physical characteristics | |
| 4 km[3] | |
Spectral type | B–V = 0.79 ± 0.07, V–R = 0.50 ± 0.07[4] |
| 22.6 | |
| 15.9[5] | |
Eukelade is about 4 kilometres in diameter, and orbits Jupiter at an average distance of 22.5 million km in 689 days, at an inclination of 165° to the ecliptic, in a retrograde direction and with an eccentricity of 0.363.[1] Eukelade came to apojove (farthest distance from Jupiter) on 17 January 2026 when it was 0.205 AU (30.7 million km; 19.1 million mi) from Jupiter.[2]
It was named in March 2005 after Eucelade - according to John Tzetzes, listed by some (unnamed) Greek writers as one of the Muses.[9] The name ends in an "e" because the orbit is retrograde.
Eukelade belongs to the Carme group, made up of irregular retrograde moons orbiting Jupiter at a distance ranging between 23 and 24 million km and at an inclination of about 165°.
