Friday, January 5, 2024

Elara, moon of Jupiter, discovered 1905



Elara, the 8th largest moon of Jupiter, was discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine January 5, 1905.  He made his discovery at the Lick Observatory at the University of California on Mount Hamilton, east of San Jose.

Up until 1975, Elara was known as Jupiter VII when it was given the name Elara.  In Greek mythology, Elara is a lover of Zeus (Jupiter in Roman mythology).  Zeus hid her from his jealous wife Hera by putting her deep into the Earth, where she gave birth to the giant Tityos.

NASA lists Elara on their website as having a diameter of 43 km, but a 2015 article in the Astrophysical Journal lists its diameter as around 80 km.  Don't know when that will be resolved.  Elara orbits Jupiter every 258 days.

The New Horizons spacecraft captured several images of Elara as it passed on its way to Pluto. 

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