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Astronomers have identified three bodies circling the Elektra asteroid system, establishing it as the first quadruple asteroid system. Previously, just two outer moons had been discovered. A new moon was recently found.

Elektra's Background

Elektra has a 5.5-year orbit with a width of 200 kilometres. It is hardly massive by asteroid standards, but it is huge enough. Christian Peters, an astronomer, found it on February 17, 1873. It was named after Electra, a Greek mythological avenger. Elektra's first moon was identified in 2003, and her second moon was spotted in 2014.

The discovery of the second moon made no ripples because the other asteroid Sylvia had previously been discovered to have two moons nine years ago.

The discovery of the third moon

NARIT researcher’s reanalysed data collected three days following the finding of the second moon. The presence of the third moonlet was detected at this time, S/2014 (130) 2 is the preliminary designation for the third moon.

S/2003 (130) 1 the first moon

It has a diameter of 6 kilometres, Elektra is orbited by the moon at a distance of around 1300 kilometres. Despite being in a tight orbit, it is orbiting at a distance that allows it to be seen. The second and third satellites are comparable in size, measuring 2.0 and 1.6 kilometres wide, respectively.

Why did it take so long to find the third moon?

The second moonlet was spotted quickly using data from 2014. The third and second moons were around the same size. At 344 kilometres, the third moon orbits Elektra even closer. However, it is 15,000 times fainter than the asteroid it is orbiting. As a result, its light is easily lost in Elektra's brilliance. Furthermore, Elektra is so near to the third satellite that flaws in the parent body's form affect its already eccentric orbit.

Why does Elektra have three moons?

When asteroid impacts rip off parts of the parent body, asteroid moons arise. The fractured portion never travels far enough away from its gravitational pull. This is most likely what happened with the second and third moons because their orbits overlap and their spectra and compositions are similar.

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