• Question: do different moons have different names

    Asked by littlemissknowitall to Douglas, Matt, Tom on 24 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Matthew Hurley

      Matthew Hurley answered on 24 Jun 2010:

      Yes there are thousands.

    • Photo: Douglas Blane

      Douglas Blane answered on 24 Jun 2010:

      Yes they do. Some planets, like Mercury, don’t have moons but most of them do.

      Mars has a couple of little rocks called Phobos and Deimos, and NASA are thinking now that a mission to Mars would be a lot easier if it went to Phobos rather than the surface of Mars. Be easier to get back again for one thing.

      Jupiter, the largest planet, has 63 moons that we know of. The four largest are Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, named after the lovers of Zeus, which is the Greek name for Jupiter. All the others are name after his lovers too.

      Saturn also has loads of moons. The largest, Titan, is bigger than Mercury. Saturn’s moons are named after characters from Greek mythology and from other mythologies. Some are named after Inuit gods and some after Norse ice giants. Take a look here: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_the_names_of_Saturn%27s_moons

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