{"id":514,"date":"2022-09-20T19:35:54","date_gmt":"2022-09-20T19:35:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/?p=514"},"modified":"2022-09-20T19:37:59","modified_gmt":"2022-09-20T19:37:59","slug":"how-many-moons-does-each-planet-have","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/technical-articles\/how-many-moons-does-each-planet-have\/","title":{"rendered":"How Many Moons Does Each Planet Have?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Planets and Moons<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Mercury &#8211; 0<\/li><li>Venus &#8211; 0<\/li><li>Earth &#8211; 1<\/li><li>Mars &#8211; 2<\/li><li>Jupiter &#8211; 79 (53 confirmed, 26 provisional)<\/li><li>Saturn &#8211; 82 (53 confirmed, 29 provisional)<\/li><li>Uranus &#8211; 27<\/li><li>Neptune &#8211; 14<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Moons \u2014 also called natural satellites \u2014 come in many shapes, sizes and types. They are generally solid bodies, and few have atmospheres. Most planetary moons probably formed from the discs of gas and dust circulating around planets in the early solar system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h1>We recommend you<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/solarsystem.nasa.gov\/news\/301\/10-things-about-our-solar-systems-most-marvelous-moons\/\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/technical-articles\/the-smells-of-space\/\">The smells of space <\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>There are hundreds of moons in our solar system \u2014 even a few asteroids have been found to have small companion moons. Moons that begin with a letter and a year are considered provisional moons. They will be given a proper name when their discoveries are confirmed by additional observations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of the terrestrial (rocky) planets of the inner solar system, neither Mercury nor Venus have any moons at all, Earth has one and Mars has its two small moons. In the outer solar system, the gas giants Jupiter and Saturn and the ice giants Uranus and Neptune have dozens of moons. As these planets grew in the early solar system, they were able to capture smaller objects with their large gravitational fields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">*Moons of planets and dwarf planets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-stripes\"><table><tbody><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Planet\/Dwarf Planet<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Confirmed Moons<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Provisional Moons<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Total<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Mercury<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Venus<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Earth<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">1<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">1<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Mars<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">2<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">2<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Jupiter<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">53<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">26<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">79<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Saturn<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">53<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">29<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">82<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Uranus<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">27<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">27<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Neptune<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">14<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">14<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Dwarf Planets<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Pluto<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">5<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">5<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Eris<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">1<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">1<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Haumea<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">2<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">2<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Makemake<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">1<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">1<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Ceres<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Totals<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>158<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>56<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>214*<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2><strong>How Moons Get Their Names<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Most moons in our solar system are named for mythological characters from a wide variety of cultures. The newest moons discovered at Saturn, for example, are named for Norse gods such as&nbsp;Bergelmir, a giant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/solarsystem.nasa.gov\/system\/internal_resources\/details\/original\/474_Shakespeare.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/solarsystem.nasa.gov\/internal_resources\/474\" alt=\"Shakespeare\" width=\"-2385\" height=\"-2385\"\/><\/a><figcaption>Shakespeare\u2019s characters are immortalized in orbit at Uranus.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Uranus is the exception. Uranus&#8217; moons are named for characters in William Shakespeare&#8217;s plays so you\u2019ll find&nbsp;Ophelia&nbsp;and&nbsp;Puck&nbsp;in orbit. Other Uranian moon names were chosen from Alexander Pope&#8217;s poetry (Belinda&nbsp;and&nbsp;Ariel).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Moons are given provisional designations such as S\/2009 S1, the first satellite discovered at Saturn in 2009. The International Astronomical Union approves an official name when the discovery is confirmed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2><strong>Moons of the Inner Solar System<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Earth&#8217;s Moon&nbsp;probably formed when a large body about the size of Mars collided with Earth, ejecting a lot of material from our planet into orbit. Debris from the early Earth and the impacting body accumulated to form the Moon approximately 4.5 billion years ago (the age of the oldest collected lunar rocks). Twelve American astronauts landed on the Moon during NASA&#8217;s Apollo program from 1969 to 1972, studying the Moon and bringing back rock samples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Usually the term moon brings to mind a spherical object, like Earth&#8217;s Moon. The two moons of Mars,&nbsp;Phobos&nbsp;and&nbsp;Deimos, are different. While both have nearly circular orbits and travel close to the plane of the planet&#8217;s equator, they are lumpy and dark. Phobos is slowly drawing closer to Mars and could crash into the planet in 40 or 50 million years. Or the planet&#8217;s gravity might break Phobos apart, creating a thin ring around Mars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Jupiters_Moons-1024x576.webp\" alt=\"Moons of Jupiter\" class=\"wp-image-516\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Jupiters_Moons-1024x576.webp 1024w, http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Jupiters_Moons-300x169.webp 300w, http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Jupiters_Moons-768x432.webp 768w, http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Jupiters_Moons-1536x864.webp 1536w, http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Jupiters_Moons.webp 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2><strong>Moons of the Giant Planets<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Jupiter&#8217;s menagerie of moons includes the largest in the solar system (Ganymede), an ocean moon (Europa) and a volcanic moon (Io). Many of Jupiter&#8217;s outer moons have highly elliptical orbits and orbit backwards (opposite to the spin of the planet). Saturn, Uranus and Neptune also have some irregular moons, which orbit far from their respective planets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Saturn has two ocean moons \u2013&nbsp;Enceladus&nbsp;and&nbsp;Titan. Both have subsurface oceans and Titan also has surface seas of lakes of ethane and methane. The chunks of ice and rock in Saturn&#8217;s rings (and the particles in the rings of the other outer planets) are not considered moons, yet embedded in Saturn&#8217;s rings are distinct moons or moonlets. These shepherd moons help keep the rings in line. Titan, the second largest in the solar system, is the only moon with a thick atmosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the realm of the ice giants, Uranus&#8217;s inner moons appear to be about half water ice and half rock.&nbsp;Miranda&nbsp;is the most unusual; its chopped-up appearance shows the scars of impacts of large rocky bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Neptune&#8217;s moon&nbsp;Triton&nbsp;is as big as Pluto and orbits backwards compared with Neptune&#8217;s direction of rotation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2><strong>Moons of Dwarf Planets<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Pluto&#8217;s large moon&nbsp;Charon&nbsp;is about half the size of Pluto. Like Earth&#8217;s Moon, Charon may have formed from debris resulting from an early collision of an impactor with Pluto. Scientists using the Hubble Space Telescope to study Pluto found four more small moons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Eris, another dwarf planet even more distant than Pluto, has a small moon of its own, named Dysnomia. Haumea, another dwarf planet, has two satellites, Hi&#8217;iaka and Namaka. Ceres, the closest dwarf planet to the Sun, has no moons.<a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2>More Moons<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Scientists weren&#8217;t sure if asteroids could hold moons in their orbits until the Galileo spacecraft flew past&nbsp;asteroid Ida&nbsp;in 1993. Images revealed a tiny moon, later named Dactyl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/solarsystem.nasa.gov\/moons\/in-depth\/\">NASA Solar System Exploration<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Planets and Moons Mercury &#8211; 0 Venus &#8211; 0 Earth &#8211; 1 Mars &#8211; 2 Jupiter &#8211; 79 (53 confirmed, 26 provisional) Saturn &#8211; 82 (53 confirmed, 29 provisional) Uranus &#8211; 27 Neptune &#8211; 14 Moons \u2014 also called natural satellites \u2014 come in many shapes, sizes and types. They are generally solid bodies, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":515,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[8,148,24,114,19],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/514"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=514"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/514\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":519,"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/514\/revisions\/519"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/515"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dereumlabs.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}