Sycorax (moon) - Definition and Overview

Sycorax ("SIK or aks") is a moon of Uranus. Its orbital radius is approximately 12.2 million km from Uranus and is about 190 km in diameter, but this size estimate is based on the moon's apparent brightness and the assumption that it has an albedo of about 0.07. Its orbit is retrograde and highly inclined. Sycorax's composition is probably a mixture of rock and ice, and its unusually red color suggests a historical link with the Kuiper belt; Sycorax is probably a captured Kuiper Belt object.

Sycorax was discovered on September 6 - September 7, 1997 by Brett J. Gladman, Philip D. Nicholson, Joseph A. Burns, and John J. Kavelaars using the 200-inch Hale telescope; they also discovered the moon Caliban at the same time.

Sycorax is named after Caliban's mother in William Shakespeare's play The Tempest.