The Moons of the Ocean God

Salutations! My name is Lillian Avarain, and I’m 16. If you couldn’t tell, I’m Lila’s older sister. I’m here to tell you about Neptune’s moons. Neptune has 13 moons, and they’re all named after aquatic creatures in Greek mythology. Here’s a little bit about my three favorites.



Sao is an irregular satellite of Neptune, which means it doesn’t orbit in a perfect ellipse or circle. Sao orbits Neptune at a distance of about 22.4 million km and is about 44km in diameter. Sao is named after one of the Nereids. Nereids were sea sprites that helped sailors during storms. Sao was especially associated with sailing and is referred to as “The Rescuer” or “safety”



Neso is the outermost irregular natural satellite of Neptune. Neso orbits Neptune at a distance of more than 48 million km, making it the most distant known moon of any planet. Neso is about 60 km in diameter, and is named after another Nereid.



Triton is the largest moon of Neptune, and it has a diameter of 2,700 kilometers. Triton’s orbital period is about -5 Earth days. The number is negative because Triton is the only moon in the solar system that circles Neptune in the opposite direction the planet rotates. Triton’s core is rock and metal, and it is covered in an icy mantle and frozen nitrogen. The surface is relatively flat, yet there are a few impact craters. It was discovered only seventeen days after the discovery of Neptune. It is the largest of all of Neptune’s moons. If you added all of the mass of the other moons, they would only make up one third of the entire mass of the Neptunian system. Triton is named after Triton, the messenger of the sea. He was the son of Neptune and Amphitrite.

I hope you all decide to come visit these three awesome moons!