Proteus orbits Neptune.The planet is very far away from the Earth, so we did not have much information about its moon. Voyager 2 discovered the moon Proteus.Voyager 2 was a spacecraft that brought in a lot of pictures and information about the universe. It was in the year 1989 that the world came to know about this moon. It is not a major moon like Triton is.We were able to discover Triton from Earth with a telescope. Although even a smaller moon Nereid had been discovered and not Proteus.Proteus had a relatively dark surface, and it didn’t have a spherical shape. So, it was missed by that telescope. It was only discovered 33 years later with the help of this spacecraft that actually went out closer.We know that Proteus is among the larger Neptunian moons, it has many moons. But the largest moon is Triton. The size of Proteus is not anywhere close to that of Triton. But yes, it is the second-largest moon of Neptune. Proteus has a vague box-like shape. It is not a complete sphere, but if it had a little more mass, it would have become a sphere due to surface gravity.Proteus has been known to be the darkest object in the whole universe of our solar system. It is similar to Phoebe, Saturn’s moon, which reflects only 6% of the light from its surface. So, they are nearly undetected.Porteus gets its name from a Greek god. According to Greek mythology, he is known as a shape-shifting god.If you enjoyed this article, why not also read about the moon Callisto or Nix (moon) here at Kidadl.Proteus Moon Discovery DetailsProteus orbits Neptune. It was discovered by Voyager 2.It is amazing to know that Proteus is the closest moon to Neptune and yet it was missed in the initial discoveries. It was very dark on the surface, and it was also not a sphere. It was irregularly shaped. It was not seen through the telescope from Earth. Rather than the third moon, a much smaller, brighter, and almost round-shaped Nereid was noted.Proteus is actually the second largest of all the moons and Neptunian satellites. Another fascinating fact is that the name of this moon has been kept after a Greek god who is known for shifting shapes according to Greek Mythology.The first signs of Neptune VIII, or Proteus, were seen when the Voyager took pics of the area close to Neptune, making us aware that the second-largest moon of Neptune was Proteus. It was initially given the designation of S/1989 N1 as it was discovered in the year 1989.The exact date of this discovery was not known, but it was estimated. As the Voyager 2 had taken 17 pictures of that part of space in a period of 21 days. This all gave the estimated date of discovery of proteus as September 16, 1991.It was discovered that Proteus was 248.5 mi (400 km) wide in diameter. This was noted to be way larger than the Nereid. The possible reason for Proteus’s being missed by the telescope from Earth was the close proximity of the Neptune equator. The glare of the reflection of sunlight covers it when seen from a telescope. So, only when a spacecraft gets closer can it be seen.Proteus is more than 248.5 mi (400 km) in diameter, making it bigger than Nereid, another moon of Neptune. However, it was not found by Earth-based telescopes because it is so close to the planet that it is lost in the glare of reflected sunlight.Possibly in the top position among the darkest objects in our solar system, Proteus has a higher ranking. It reflects around 6% of the total sunlight that hits its surface. Proteus is heavily cratered. We also know that this is not a sphere. It is believed by scientists that if there was a little more weight, it would have turned into a sphere under its own surface gravity. An interesting fact is that Saturn’s moon Mimas is spherical in shape, even though it has less mass than Proteus.Proteus Moon Surface FeaturesScientists have not been able to identify the exact composition of this Proteus moon.There is a strong belief that there must be a lot of ice on its surface. Others believe that it could be made up of rocks like an asteroid found in space.It has been noticed that there are many large craters all across the surface of Proteus. The largest crater has been named Pharos. The depth of this certain crater is 9.3 mi (15 km) and, astonishingly, the diameter of this single crater is 143 mi (230 km). This can be clearly seen in the pictures of the surface of the moon. Valleys have been noticed on the surface of Proteus. The possible reason for their existence could be a collision with other comets or space objects that flew past.The shape of Proteus can be called close to an ellipse, but it is not a perfect sphere like the moon of Earth. There are loads of craters on the Proetus’s surface.Distance Of Proteus Moon From NeptuneProteus is at a distance of 57,700 mi (92,800 km) from Neptune, which is way less than Triton’s orbit.One full revolution around Neptune takes it around 26 hours and 54 minutes, a little more than our own moon.Proteus is irregularly shaped as it has not got enough gravitational pull to make it a round shape under force. The direction of its revolution is the same as that of Neptune’s rotation. This makes it stay close to Neptune’s equator.So, all in all, the three biggest moons of Neptune are Proteus, Triton, and Nereid. In total, the 14 moons are Naiad, Thalassa, Larissa, S/2004 N1, Despina, Galatea, Proteus, Triton, Nereid, Laomedeia, Psamathe, Halimede, Sao, and Neso.Temperature and Orbital Period Of Proteus MoonProteus circles Neptune in 26 hours, 54 minutes.Proteus is extremely cold, with a temperature of -220 °C (-360 °F). It has water ice mainly and no signs of complex organic compounds.Proteus takes approximately 27 hours to complete a round of its orbital motion. The surface of the proteus is heavily cratered. The orbital motion of Proteus is in the same direction as that of Neptune itself. So, Proteus remains in close proximity to Neptune’s equator.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for 15 amazing Proteus moon facts for kids that adore the solar system, then why not take a look at facts about Bolton Town in England, or 23 impressive lightning bolt facts that will completely shock you!
Proteus orbits Neptune.
