Alternative names Saturn XX
S/2000 S 2 Eccentricity 0.3631 Albedo 0.04 assumed Discovered 7 August 2000 Orbits Saturn | Semi-major axis 15.200 Gm Dimensions 22 km Orbital period 687 days Inclination 45.083° | |
 | ||
Discovered by Brett J. Gladman et al. Discoverers John J. Kavelaars, Brett J. Gladman Similar Brett J Gladman discoveries, Saturn moons, Other celestial objects | ||
Saturn moon paaliaq
Paaliaq (/ˈpɑːli.ɑːk/ PAH-lee-ahk) is a prograde irregular satellite of Saturn. It was discovered by Brett J. Gladman, John J. Kavelaars, Jean-Marc Petit, Hans Scholl, Matthew J. Holman, Brian G. Marsden, Philip D. Nicholson and Joseph A. Burns in early October 2000, and given the temporary designation S/2000 S 2. It was named in August 2003 after a fictional shaman in the book The Curse of the Shaman, written by Michael Kusugak, who supplied Kavelaars with the names of giants from Inuit mythology that were used for other Saturnian moons.
Contents
Paaliaq is thought to be about 22 kilometres in diameter, and orbits Saturn at an average distance of 15.2 million km in 687 days. It is a member of the Inuit group of irregular satellites. It also has a proximity with 9 other moons reaching up to ten miles from each.
It is light red in color, and in the infrared the Paaliapian (Paaliaqan) spectrum is very similar to the Inuit-group satellites Kiviuq and Siarnaq, supporting the thesis of a possible common origin of the Inuit group in the break-up of a larger body.