[27][29], One of the works which recounts this adventure is Apollonius of Rhodes' Argonautica (3rd century BC), the first work in written literature that describes a Triton as "fish-tailed". Excepting Etruscan art, which has older examples. The resolution is about 6.2 miles, sufficient to begin to show topographic detail. Triton was the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite according to Hesiod 's Theogony. Altar of Domitius Ahenobarbus. [15] It is believed to be composed largely of hydrocarbons and nitriles created by the action of the Sun's and stellar ultraviolet light on methane. There are numerous universities, colleges, and high schools and businesses that use Triton as their mascot. [78], Triton makes appearance in English literature as the messenger for the god Poseidon. At some time during the Greek and Roman era, Triton(s) became a generic term for a merman (mermen) in art and literature. [4][5] Tidal interactions also cause Triton's orbit, which is already closer to Neptune than the Moon is to Earth, to gradually decay further; predictions are that 3.6billion years from now, Triton will pass within Neptune's Roche limit. More heating would increase the size of the ocean. Lassell did not name his discovery; he later successfully suggested the name Hyperion, previously chosen by John Herschel, for the eighth moon of Saturn when he discovered it.[23]. The Moon Mars' Moons - 2 Mars has two moons called Phobos and Deimos. A vast multinational search for five people who had descended to view the wreckage of the sunken R.M.S. No efforts aimed at Neptune and Triton went beyond the proposal phase and NASA's funding for missions to the outer Solar System is currently focused on the Jupiter and Saturn systems. The proposed launch of trident is set for October 2025 and will not arrive until 2038. The agency estimates the particles go as high as 5 miles (8 kilometers) before flowing downwind and striking the surface. [28], Triton-Eurypylus welcomed the Argonauts with a guest-gift of a clod of earth which was a pledge that the Greeks would be granted the land of Cyrene, Libya in the future. 1983: Pioneer 10 crosses the orbit of Neptune and becomes the first human-made object to travel beyond the orbits of . The authors also said their research showed that Triton played an important role in the formation of Neptune's system. Triton is the largest natural satellite of the planet Neptune, and was the first Neptunian moon to be discovered, on October 11, 1846, by English astronomer William Lassell.It is the only large moon in the Solar System with a retrograde orbit, an orbit in the direction opposite to its planet's rotation. [26], Trident is a proposed NASA mission that is to further study Neptune's moon Triton (moon). Photo Credit: Kenny Eliason it orbits in a direction opposite to the planet's rotation). The USS Triton (SSN-586) was the only attack submarine of her class, and the only US Navy nuclear-powered submarine to have two reactors. [1][2] He was the ruler (possessor) of the depths of the sea,[1] who is either "dreadful" or "mighty" () according to the epithet given him by Hesiod. [1] Above them a haze is present extending up to 30km from the surface. The ridges and furrows, or sulci, such as Yasu Sulci, Ho Sulci, and Lo Sulci,[67] are thought to be of intermediate age in Triton's geological history, and in many cases to have formed concurrently. The team of astronomers is lead by M. Holmanof the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and [70], The few impact craters on Triton are almost all concentrated in the leading hemispherethat facing the direction of the orbital motionwith the majority concentrated around the equator between 30 and 70 longitude,[70] resulting from material swept up from orbit around Neptune. [78] Neptune Odyssey is a mission concept for a Neptune orbiter with a focus on Triton being studied as a possible large strategic science mission by NASA that would launch in 2033 and arrive at the Neptune system in 2049.[79]. A family of large sea snails, the shells of some of which have been used as trumpets since antiquity, are commonly known as "tritons", see Triton (gastropod). This hydrogen quickly escapes into the space serving as a source of plasma in the magnetosphere of Neptune. Discovery of 3 satellites of Neptune - University of British Columbia [7] Voyager 2 remains the only spacecraft to have visited Triton. [h][52] The term "Ichthyocentaur" did not originate in Ancient Greece, and only appeared in writing in the Byzantine period (12th century); "Centaur-Triton" is another word for a Triton with horse-legs. [13][14][b], Triton is "sea-hued" according to Ovid and "his shoulders barnacled with sea-shells". [68] The depressions (cavi) are probably not impact craters because they are all of the similar size and have smooth curves. Triton is the fabled father and leader of 3000 mermaids, and 3000 tritons (mermen). It would also help gain knowledge on the surface level of the moon and shed light on the processes that go on there. They were discovered in 1877 by astronomer Asaph Hall, who named them for the Latin terms "fear" and "panic". We'll take a look at how many moons Neptune has today . This is the first place such bodies have been found apart from Earth, and Triton is the only icy body known to feature cryolava lakes, although similar cryomagmatic extrusions can be seen on Ariel, Ganymede, Charon, and Titan. Triton's orbit precesses forward relative to Neptune's rotation with a period of about 678 Earth years (4.1 Neptunian years),[4][5] making its Neptune-orbit-relative inclination vary between 127 and 173. [66], Triton's western hemisphere consists of a strange series of fissures and depressions known as "cantaloupe terrain" because it resembles the skin of a cantaloupe melon. Its equator is almost exactly aligned with its orbital plane. This source of internal heat disappeared following tidal locking and circularization of the orbit. Data from the approach of Voyager 2 to Neptune on August 25, 1989, led to a more accurate estimate of Tritons diameter (2,706 km). Moreover, according to Apollonius Rhodius, he married the Oceanid of said region, Libya. The surface pressure is only 14 microbars (1.4 Pa or 0.0105 mmHg ), 170000 of the surface pressure on Earth, [1] and it is composed of nitrogen, similar to those of Titan and Earth. [19] During the flyby, Voyager 2 took measurements of the atmosphere,[20] finding methane and nitrogen in the atmosphere. [7] The temperature of Triton's upper atmosphere, at 955K, is higher than that at its surface, due to heat absorbed from solar radiation and Neptune's magnetosphere. Nereid is named after the Nereids, sea-nymphs, in Greek mythology. Some of the terrace cliffs rise more than 1 km (0.6 mile) high. [48], New concepts for missions to the Neptune system to be conducted in the 2010s were proposed by NASA scientists on numerous occasions over the last decades. The Earth's Moon - 1 The Earth has a single moon; the Moon sometime also referred to as Luna. Triton half-man, half-lobster. Triton is one of the few moons in the Solar System known to be geologically active (the others being Jupiter's Io and Europa, and Saturn's Enceladus and Titan). How Many Moons Does Neptune Have? - Let's Talk Stars [27] This local deity has thus been euhemeristically rationalized as "then ruler over Libya" by Diodorus Siculus. [44] An upper limit in the low 40s (K) can be set from vapor pressure equilibrium with nitrogen gas in Triton's atmosphere. [7] A more recent hypothesis suggests that, before its capture, Triton was part of a binary system. [21] Around 100 dark surface fans on the SPT are attributed to the plumes. They were half-human in form, with the tail of a fish. [30] It has also been hypothesized that by this time "Triton" has become a generic term for a merman. Until the discovery of Neptunes second moon Nereid in 1949, Triton was commonly referred to as the satellite of Neptune. These features are unusually crater free, indicating they are young and were recently molten. [60][62], As aforementioned, there is the female version of the half-human, half-fishlike being, sometimes called a "tritoness"[63] or a "female triton". These Tritons were preserved mummies or taxidermied real animals or humans (or fabrication made to appear as such). ", "Trident: The Path to Triton on a Discovery Budget", "Hubble Space Telescope Helps Find Evidence that Neptune's Largest Moon Is Warming Up", "Triton Haze Analogs: The Role of Carbon Monoxide in Haze Formation", "Neptune Odyssey: A Flagship Concept for the Exploration of the NeptuneTriton System", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atmosphere_of_Triton&oldid=1136561358, This page was last edited on 30 January 2023, at 23:30. As a consequence, its surface is relatively young with few obvious impact craters, and a complex geological history revealed in intricate cryovolcanic and tectonic terrains. Your email address will not be published. Skopa's sculpture is long lost. Triton is relatively flat; its observed topography never varies beyond a kilometer. Early in the 20th century, the philosopher priest Mander and his biologist wife, Azur, members of the Royal Family, broke tradition and put their one-year-old son, Triton, through Terrigenesis to unlock his super . Because they were not detected in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum of Triton obtained by Voyager 2 in 1989, their abundances are unlikely to exceed a few percent. Mastodon: https://qoto.org/@howellspace, Mars donut! It is the only large moon in the Solar System with a retrograde orbit, an orbit in the direction opposite to its planet's rotation. Moons of Neptune - Wikipedia [87] But Rudolf Wittkower has cautioned against exaggerating the influences of Florentine fountains. [27] Trident would dramatically help in furthering our knowledge of the atmosphere of Triton as well as the activity from the surface plumes captured in Voyager 2. Triton (moon) Facts for Kids [46] Unlike other atmospheres, Triton's lacks a stratosphere and instead has a thermosphere from altitudes of 8 to 950km and an exosphere above that. The plains are dotted with pits, such as Leviathan Patera, which are probably the vents from which this lava emerged. She was decommissioned in 1969 and languished awaiting scrapping until 2007, which began at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, and was completed as of 30 November 2009. When John Herschel received news of Neptune's discovery, he wrote to Lassell suggesting he search for possible moons. The moon was named after a mythological merman who had the upper body of a human and the lower body of a fish. Perseverance rover spots holey Red Planet rock (photo), How human 'computers' Annie Jump Cannon and Henrietta Swan Leavitt revolutionized astronomy, Dark nebula dominates gorgeous new view of Orion constellation (photo). [2], Triton's atmosphere is well structured and global. Combined, they are nearly the size of Kraken Mare on Titan. [5] During a close encounter with the planet, Neptune pulled Triton away from its companion. Triton's atmosphere also has clouds of condensed nitrogen that lie between 1 and 3km from its surface. Trace ices include 0.1% methane and 0.05% carbon monoxide. In Depth | Triton - NASA Solar System Exploration Triton - David Darling The salinity of the ocean is mostly acquired from differentiation from volatiles in rocks on the planet and it is thought that these volatiles are sodium chloride dominant. In 2010, long-range infrared observations with the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope revealed that the thin atmosphere of Triton changes with the seasons. And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com. Triton, largest of Neptunes moons, whose unusual orbital characteristics suggest that it formed elsewhere in the solar system and was later captured by Neptune. Just 17 days after the discovery of this planet, on 10 Sep 1846, the first Neptune Moon 'Triton' was discovered by English astronomer William Lassell. They were believed at that time to have inhabited salt water environments and would occasionally come ashore. "Presumed human remains" were among the debris and evidence recovered from the seafloor where the doomed Titan submersible's remnants were found, the US Coast Guard said Wednesday. [7] The two other known components are methane and carbon monoxide, whose abundances are a few hundredths of a percent of that of the nitrogen. [35] Triton's reddish color is thought to be the result of methane ice, which is converted to tholins under exposure to ultraviolet radiation. [54] Fifty-five percent of Triton's surface is covered with frozen nitrogen, with water ice comprising 1535% and frozen CO2 forming the remaining 1020%. [73] Data from the approach of Voyager 2 to Neptune on August 25, 1989, led to a more accurate estimate of Triton's diameter (2,706km). = synchronous rotation; the rotation and orbital periods are the same. Triton is named after the Greek sea god Triton, the son of Poseidon. [8], Other Solar System planets, dwarf planets, and moons with nitrogen-dominated atmospheres are the Earth, Titan, Pluto and, possibly, Eris. [29][30] The event was brief but gentle, saving Triton from collisional disruption. It is the only large moon in the Solar System with a retrograde orbit, an orbit in the opposite direction to its planets rotation. Mermaids. Triton lived with his parents in a golden palace on the bottom of the sea. The first attempt to measure the diameter of Triton was made by Gerard Kuiper in 1954. Triton is one of the few moons in the Solar System known to be geologically active (the others being Jupiters Io and Saturns Enceladus). At least two of the streaks, and perhaps dozens, are the result of active geyserlike plumes seen erupting during the Voyager 2 flyby. . [7] Voyager 2 also captured at least two plumes erupting through the Nitrogen ice of Triton and this is the first evidence of active plumes on an icy world such as Triton. [20], Triton is named after the Greek sea god Triton (), the son of Poseidon (the Greek god corresponding to the Roman Neptune). [7], Cantaloupe terrain, which is mostly dirty water ice, is only known to exist on Triton. Neptune moons: Facts, names and discovery | Space Other information about Triton's history could come from studying small bodies in the solar system, such as Comet 67P/ChuryumovGerasimenko.
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