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Overview
Oberon, the second-largest moon of Uranus. Photo taken by NASA’s Voyager mission in 1986.
Uranus has 27 moons (as of 2012), Cordelia, Ophelia, Bianca, Cressida, Desdemona, Juliet, Portia, Rosalind, Belinda, Puck, Miranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, Oberon, Caliban, Sycorax, Prospero, Setebos, Stephano, Trinculo, and six unnamed moons.
Two large moons were discovered by Wm. Herschel in 1781, 2 were discovered by Wm. Lassell in 1851, and one by G. Kuiper in 1948.
Some of the moons of Uranus in order by distance from Uranus
| Moon | Distance from Uranus (km) | Diameter (km) | Interesting Feature | Discoverer, Year of Discovery |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cordelia | 50,000 | 26 | shepherds Uranus’ outermost ring | Voyager 2, 1986 |
| Ophelia | 54,000 | 32 | shepherds Uranus’ outermost ring | Voyager 2, 1986 |
| Bianca | 59,000 | 44 | Voyager 2, 1986 | |
| Cressida | 62,000 | 66 | Voyager 2, 1986 | |
| Desdemona | 63,000 | 58 | Voyager 2, 1986 | |
| Juliet | 64,000 | 84 | Voyager 2, 1986 | |
| Portia | 66,000 | 110 | Voyager 2, 1986 | |
| Rosalind | 70,000 | 54 | Voyager 2, 1986 | |
| Belinda | 75,000 | 68 | Voyager 2, 1986 | |
| 1986U10 | 75,000 | 40 | Erich Karkoschka, 1999 | |
Puck |
86,000 | 154 | Irregular shape and a mottled surface | Voyager 2, 1985 |
Miranda |
130,000 | 472 | Its surface is marked by huge grooves, and appears to have shattered many times. It has a bright, V-shaped groove on its surface, the Inverness Corona, which has been nicknamed the chevron. | G. Kuiper, 1948 |
Ariel |
191,000 | 1158 | The brightest moon of Uranus. Youngest surface of Uranus’ moons, the least cratered. Has long valleys and canyons. | Wm. Lassell, 1851 |
Umbriel |
266,000 | 1170 | Darkest moon of Uranus. Old surface, heavily cratered. It has a bright ring at its top (probably a crater floor) called a fluorescent cheerio. | Wm. Lassell, 1851 |
Titania |
436,000 | 1578 | The biggest moon of Uranus. It is about half the size of our moon. Titania is covered by many small craters, a few huge impact basins ice cliffs, and fault lines. | Wm. Herschel, 1787 |
| Oberon |
583,000 | 1523 | Oberon is covered by many craters (indicating an old surface) and ice. | Wm. Herschel, 1787 |
| Caliban | 7,200,000 | 80 | Gladman, 1997 | |
| Sycorax | 12,200,000 | 60 | Gladman, 1997 |