Tarvos /ˈtɑːrvɒs/, or Saturn XXI, is a prograde irregular satellite of Saturn.
It was discovered by John J. Kavelaars et al. on September 23, 2000, and given the temporary designation S/2000 S 4. The name, given in August 2003, is after Tarvos, a deity depicted as a bull god carrying three cranes alongside its back from Gaulish mythology.
Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | B. J. Gladman et al. |
Discovery date | September 23, 2000 |
Designations | |
Designation | Saturn XXI |
Pronunciation | /ˈtɑːrvɒs/ |
Named after | Tarvos Trigaranus |
S/2000 S 4 | |
Adjectives | Tarvian |
Orbital characteristics | |
Epoch 2000 January 1.5 | |
18.215 Gm | |
Eccentricity | 0.528 |
926.4 d (2.54 yr) | |
Inclination | 38.6° |
Satellite of | Saturn |
Group | Gallic group |
Physical characteristics | |
Mean diameter | 15+50% −30% km |
Albedo | 0.06 assumed |
Spectral type | light red B−V=0.77, R−V=0.57 |
22.1 | |
12.9 | |
Tarvos orbits Saturn at an average distance of 18 million km in 926 days and is about 15 km in diameter (assuming an albedo of 0.06). It has a high orbital eccentricity of 0.53.
It is a member of the Gallic group of irregular satellites.
With a similar orbit and displaying a similar light-red colour, Tarvos is thought to have its origin in the break-up of a common progenitor or to be a fragment of Albiorix.
This article uses material from the Wikipedia English article Tarvos (moon), which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license ("CC BY-SA 3.0"); additional terms may apply (view authors). Content is available under CC BY-SA 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
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