Ganymede
The largest moon in the Solar System.
Ganymede is a moon of Jupiter and the largest and most massive moon in the Solar System, bigger than the planet Mercury. It orbits Jupiter in about seven days in a 1:2:4 resonance with Europa and Io.
It is made of rock and water in about equal parts and may hide an ocean with more water than all of Earth's oceans. It is the only moon known to generate its own magnetic field.
Quick Facts
- Pronounced
- ˈ
- ɡ
- æ
- n
- ᵻ
- m
- iː
- d; GAN
- im
- eed
- Adjectives
- Ganymedian; Ganymedean (ˌ, ɡ, æ, n, ə, ˈ, m, iː, d, i,., ən)
- Discoverer
- Galileo Galilei; Simon Marius
- Discovered
- January 7, 1610
- Inclination
- 2.214° (to the ecliptic); 0.20° (to Jupiter's equator)
- Satellite of
- Jupiter
- Moment of inertia factor
- 0.3115, 0.0028
- Rotation
- synchronous
More in Celestial Bodies & Worlds
Elsewhere in Cosmos Codex
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