Phoebe ( FEE-bee) is the most massive irregular satellite of Saturn with a mean diameter of 213 km (132 mi). It was discovered by William Henry Pickering on 18 March 1899 from photographic plates that had been taken by DeLisle Stewart starting on 16 August 1898 at the Boyden Station of the Carmen Alto Observatory near Arequipa, Peru. It was the first natural satellite to be discovered photographically. Phoebe was the first target encountered upon the arrival of the Cassini spacecraft in the Saturn system in 2004, and is thus unusually well-studied for an irregular moon of its size.
Facts
Object TypeMoon of Saturn (irregular satellite) 1 Discovery Year Connections
Orbits
Source Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Phoebe (moon)
Phoebe (moon), lead section
the most massive irregular satellite of Saturn
Phoebe (moon), infobox (Discovered)
18 March 1899
Lead section
Phoebe ( FEE-bee) is the most massive irregular satellite of Saturn with a mean diameter of 213 km (132 mi).
- In Category: Celestial Objects, Phoebe (moon), Wikipedia summary
In Group: Moons of Saturn, Lead sentence
Phoebe ( FEE-bee) is the most massive irregular satellite of Saturn with a mean diameter of 213 km (132 mi).
View the SourceWikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Wikimedia FoundationOrbits: Saturn, Phoebe (moon), orbital characteristics section (edges wave 2)Quote, Orbits: Saturn, Phoebe (moon), orbital characteristics section (edges wave 2)
Phoebe completes a full orbit around Saturn in about 18 months, and its orbit is retrograde; that is, it orbits Saturn in the opposite direction to Saturn's orbit.
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