Discovered 6 February 2003 | ||
Similar Scott S Sheppard discoveries, Jupiter moons, Other celestial objects | ||
Helike (/ˈhɛlᵻkiː/ HEL-ə-kee; Greek: Ελίκη), also known as Jupiter XLV, is a moon of Jupiter. It was discovered by a team of astronomers from the University of Hawaii led by Scott S. Sheppard in 2003, and given the temporary designation S/2003 J 6.
Helike is about 4 kilometres in diameter, and orbits Jupiter at an average distance of 20.54 million kilometres in 601.402 days, at an inclination of 155° to the ecliptic (156° to Jupiter's equator), in a retrograde direction and with an eccentricity of 0.1375. Its average orbital speed is 2.48 km/s.
It was named in March 2005 after Helike, one of the nymphs that nurtured Zeus (Jupiter) in his infancy on Crete.
Helike belongs to the Ananke group, retrograde irregular moons that orbit Jupiter between 19.3 and 22.7 million kilometres, at inclinations of roughly 150°.