Greip (moon) facts for kids
Greip, also known as Saturn LI, is one of the many moons that orbit the giant planet Saturn. It was first spotted by scientists in 2006. Its temporary name was S/2006 S 4 before it received its official name.
Discovery of Greip
Greip was discovered by a team of astronomers: Scott S. Sheppard, David C. Jewitt, Jan Kleyna, and Brian G. Marsden. They announced their exciting discovery on June 26, 2006. The team had been observing the area around Saturn between January 5 and May 1 of that same year.
Greip's Size and Orbit
Greip is a small moon, measuring about 6 kilometers (about 3.7 miles) across. To give you an idea, that's roughly the size of a small town!
This tiny moon travels around Saturn at a very long distance. On average, it is about 18,066,000 kilometers (about 11.2 million miles) away from Saturn. It takes Greip a long time to complete one full trip around Saturn – about 906.556 Earth days, which is more than two and a half years!
Greip's orbit is also quite tilted. Its path is inclined at 172.7 degrees compared to the ecliptic (the plane where most planets orbit the Sun). It's also tilted 159.2 degrees compared to Saturn's equator. This means it orbits in a very different way than many of Saturn's other moons. Its orbit is also not a perfect circle; it has an eccentricity of 0.3735, meaning it's a bit stretched out.
Naming Greip
Like many of Saturn's moons, Greip is named after a character from Norse mythology. Greip is a giantess, which is a female giant, in these ancient stories. She is often mentioned alongside another giantess named Gjálp.
