Surtur.space

Irregular moon of Saturn (retrograde) · Outer Saturnian system · Norse group

Surtur

Saturn XLVIII · S/2006 S 7

A four-kilometre moon on one of Saturn’s most stretched orbits, named for the fire giant of Ragnarok.

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Surtur at a glance
Object typeIrregular, retrograde moon of Saturn[1]
GroupNorse group[2]
DiscoveredMarch 6, 2006, Subaru Telescope, Mauna Kea[2]
AnnouncedJune 26, 2006[1]
Named afterSurt, leader of the fire giants[1]
Diameter≈ 4 km[1]
Mean distance≈ 22.7 million km from Saturn[3]
Orbital period≈ 1,281 days[3]
Inclination≈ 168° (retrograde)[3]
Eccentricity≈ 0.45[3]

A fire giant’s moon

Surtur is about 4 km across and orbits Saturn backwards. It was named after Surt, a leader of the fire giants of Norse mythology.[1]

A very stretched orbit

With a mean eccentricity of about 0.45, Surtur’s distance from Saturn ranges from about 12.6 to 32.9 million km.[3]

Discovery

Surtur was discovered on 6 March 2006 by Sheppard, Jewitt and Kleyna using the Subaru telescope on Mauna Kea.[2] Its discovery was announced on 26 June 2006.[1]

Surt at Ragnarok

NASA describes Surt as the guardian of Muspell, the land of fire, destined to lead the fire giants against the gods at Ragnarok.[2] In the Eddic poem, Surtr advances from the south with a sword brighter than the sun.[5]

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Orbit

One lap takes about 1,281 days — about three and a half years — at an inclination of about 168°.[3]

Saturn Titan (1.22 million km)Phoebe (12.93 million km) farthest ≈ 32.9 million km closest ≈ 12.6 million km
Top-down orbit of Surtur to scale, computed from JPL orbital elements (a ≈ 22.75 million km, e ≈ 0.448).[3] Titan and Phoebe orbits shown for comparison.[3] Mean orbital elements; the real orbit is tilted steeply and shifts over time, so this top-down view flattens it onto one plane.

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Surt and Ragnarok

The fire giant behind Saturn’s moon Surtur.

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How stretched is Surtur’s orbit?

Eccentricity explained with one of Saturn’s most elongated orbits.

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A recent smash-up among Saturn’s moons?

Why the Norse group may hint at a catastrophic collision.

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Sources

  1. Surtur (moon) — Wikipedia
  2. Surtur — NASA Science
  3. Planetary Satellite Mean Elements — NASA JPL Solar System Dynamics
  4. Norse group — Wikipedia
  5. Ragnarök — Wikipedia

Figures are rounded; where sources differ we note it. Spotted an error? Tell us.