this post was submitted on 12 Mar 2025
75 points (98.7% liked)

Astronomy

4480 readers
199 users here now

founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
top 8 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] janus2@lemmy.zip 1 points 21 minutes ago

"Did you bring enough to share with the whole class?"

the class:

[–] otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 2 hours ago* (last edited 2 hours ago)

Slut.

Try not to grab another moon on your way through the parking lot!

[–] Bristingr@lemm.ee 3 points 4 hours ago

What, having the best rings wasn't good enough for Saturn? Gosh, how greedy. /s

[–] pwnicholson@lemmy.world 18 points 14 hours ago

*"Newly identified moons" I'm pretty sure they've been there for a while.

Having 128 new moons would really be noteworthy!

[–] Zzyzx@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 10 hours ago

Jupiter excitedly pointing out this news to Juno

[–] grillgamesh@lemmy.dbzer0.com 13 points 16 hours ago

Perhaps when they become fully operational battle stations?

[–] troyunrau@lemmy.ca 5 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

This is a great question. It's like asking when a rock is too small to be a planet. I suspect there were be a definition eventually that mirrors the planetary definition -- something like "spherical(ish) and clears its orbit". The issue is that Mars would lose its two moons under that definition.

So we might end up with something like "moons" vs "natural satellites" and Mars will just have to suck it up.

[–] kinttach@lemm.ee 6 points 14 hours ago

Moons vs. dwarf moons? (Sounds like a fantasy novel series.)