Bergelmir or Saturn XXXVIII (provisional designation S/2004 S 15) is a natural satellite of Saturn. Its discovery was announced by Scott S. Sheppard, David C. Jewitt, Jan Kleyna, and Brian G. Marsden on May 4, 2005, from observations taken between December 12, 2004, and March 9, 2005.
 Bergelmir imaged by the Cassini spacecraft in September 2014 | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | S. Sheppard, D. Jewitt, J. Kleyna, and B. Marsden |
| Discovery date | May 4, 2005 |
| Designations | |
Designation | Saturn XXXVIII |
| Pronunciation | /ˈbɛərjɛlmɪər/ or /ˈbɜːrɡəlmɪər/[a] |
Named after | Bergelmir |
| S/2004 S 15 | |
| Adjectives | Bergelmian[b] |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| 19338000 km | |
| Eccentricity | 0.142 |
| 1006.659 d[2] | |
| Inclination | 158.5° |
| Satellite of | Saturn |
| Group | Norse group |
| Physical characteristics[2][3] | |
| 5+50% −30% km | |
| 8.13±0.09 h | |
| Albedo | 0.06 (assumed) |
Spectral type | B–R = 1.10 ± 0.15[4] |
| 24.2 | |
| 15.2 | |
Bergelmir is about 6 kilometers (4 miles) in diameter,[3] and orbits Saturn at an average distance of 19,338,000 km in 1006.659 days, at an inclination of 157° to the ecliptic (134° to Saturn's equator), in a retrograde direction and with an eccentricity of 0.152. Its rotation period is 8.13±0.09 hours.[2]
It was named in April 2007 after Bergelmir, a giant from Norse mythology and the grandson of Ymir, the primordial giant. Bergelmir and his wife alone among their kind were the only survivors of the enormous deluge of blood from Ymir's wounds when he was killed by Odin and his brothers at the dawn of time. Bergelmir then became the progenitor of a new race of giants.
Notes
edit- ^ The 'g' has a 'y' sound in Norse (indeed gelmir sounds like what it means in English, 'yeller'), but a spelling pronunciation would have it as 'g', as 'Aurgelmir' does in Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995).
- ^ The oblique stem of the name is Bergelmi, as in Modern Norwegian Bergelme. The -r is the nominative case ending.
References
edit- ^ Ma, Yuehua; et al. (2010). "On the Origin of Retrograde Orbit Satellites around Saturn and Jupiter". Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union. 263: 157–160. Bibcode:2010IAUS..263..157M. doi:10.1017/S1743921310001687.
- ^ a b c Denk, T.; Mottola, S. (2019). Cassini Observations of Saturn's Irregular Moons (PDF). 50th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. Lunar and Planetary Institute.
- ^ a b Denk, Tilmann; Mottola, Stefano; Tosi, Frederico; Bottke, William F.; Hamilton, Douglas P. (2018). "The Irregular Satellites of Saturn" (PDF). In Schenk, P.M.; Clark, R.N.; Howett, C.J.A.; Verbiscer, A.J.; Waite, J.H. (eds.). Enceladus and the Icy Moons of Saturn. Space Science Series. Vol. 322. Tucson, AZ: The University of Arizona Press. pp. 409–434. Bibcode:2018eims.book..409D. doi:10.2458/azu_uapress_9780816537075-ch020. ISBN 9780816537075.
- ^ Graykowski, Ariel; Jewitt, David (April 5, 2018). "Colors and Shapes of the Irregular Planetary Satellites". The Astronomical Journal. 155 (4): 184. arXiv:1803.01907. doi:10.3847/1538-3881/aab49b. ISSN 1538-3881.
External links
edit- Institute for Astronomy Saturn Satellite Data
- Jewitt's New Satellites of Saturn page
- IAUC 8523 – New Satellites of Saturn, Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams, May 4, 2005 (discovery)
- MPEC 2005-J13: Twelve New Satellites of Saturn[dead link] May 3, 2005 (discovery and ephemeris)
- IAUC 8826 – Satellites of Jupiter and Saturn, Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams, April 5, 2007 (naming the moon)