Thebe (moon) - Definition

Thebe

Image of Thebe taken by the Galileo spacecraft on January 4, 2000.
Discovery
Discovered by	Stephen P. Synnott / Voyager 1
Discovered in	March 5, 1979
Orbital characteristics
Mean radius	221,900 km
Eccentricity	0.0018
Revolution period	16h 11.3m
Inclination	1.070°
Is a satellite of	Jupiter
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter	98.6 km
Surface area	km2
Mass	7.557×1017 kg
Mean density	1.45 g/cm3
Surface gravity	0.0201m/s2
Surface Gravity (Earth = 1)	0.00205
Rotation period	16h 11.3m
Axial tilt	0.001°
Albedo	0.047
Surface temp.	min mean max K K K
Atmospheric pressure	0 kPa

Thebe (pronounced "THEE bee") is the fourth of Jupiter's known satellites by distance from the planet. It was discovered by Voyager 1 on March 5, 1979 and was first given the temporary name 1979 J 2. Later, it was found on images dating back to February 27, 1979. In 1983 it was officially named after the mythological nymph Thebe who was the daughter of the river god Asopus.

It is the outermost of the Amalthea group of inner jovian moons.

There appear to be at least three or four very large impact craters on the satellite (very large in the sense that each of these craters is roughly comparable in size to the radius of Thebe). Little else is known about it.