Dia , also known as Jupiter LIII, is a prograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. Provisionally known as S/2000 J 11, it received its name on March 7, 2015. It is named after Dia, daughter of Deioneus (or Eioneus), wife of Ixion. According to Homer, she was seduced by Zeus in stallion form; Pirithous was the issue.
The satellite is one of several known small bodies in the Himalia group.
Dia is thought to be about 4 kilometres in diameter. It orbits Jupiter at an average distance of 12 million km in 274 days, at an inclination of 28° (to Jupiter's equator), and with an eccentricity of 0.21.
Observational history
Dia was discovered by a team of astronomers from the University of Hawaii led by Scott S. Sheppard in 2000 with an observation arc of 26 days.
Initial observations were not followed up, and Dia was not observed for more than a decade after 2000. This apparent disappearance led some astronomers to consider the moon lost. One theory was that it had crashed into Himalia, creating a faint ring around Jupiter. However, it was finally recovered in observations made in 2010 and 2011.
References
External links
- Natural Satellites Ephemeris Service Minor Planet Center
- Planetary Satellite Mean Orbital Parameters NASA JPL
- Scott Sheppard pages
- David Jewitt pages
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