Thursday, March 20, 2008

How many moons does Neptune have?

Moons are the natural satellites of a planet. For example, Earth has one and we simply call it the Moon. Many of the planets of our solar system have moons. Neptune has 14 moons. Their names are:


  1. Triton

  2. Nereid

  3. Naiad

  4. Thalassa

  5. Despina

  6. Galatea

  7. Larissa

  8. Proteus

  9. Halimede

  10. Psamathe

  11. Sao

  12. Laomedeia

  13. Neso

  14. S/2004 N1

The last one, S/2004 N1, is still designated as a provisional moon. These moons are named after lesser gods of the sea and nymphs in Greek mythology. They are thus named because Neptune was named after the Roman god of the sea. Triton, the largest of Neptune's moons, was discovered in 1846. The most recently discovered moon, S/2004 N1, was identified in 2004. 


In comparison, Jupiter has 67 moons, Mars has 2, Saturn has 62, Uranus has 27 and Earth has 1. Pluto, which is no longer a planet, has 5 moons.


Hope this helps. 

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