Links
- Wikipedia
- Calypso on Wikipedia
Calypso
Details
Calypso is a small Trojan moon of Saturn that shares Tethys's orbit, holding the trailing L5 point about 60 degrees behind the larger moon. Its bright, irregular surface is coated by fine ice particles from Saturn's E ring.
Calypso circles Saturn in step with the much larger Tethys. It stays near Tethys's trailing Lagrange point, about 60 degrees behind the larger moon, while both bodies follow the same orbit around Saturn. This stable geometry makes Calypso a natural example of a Trojan companion rather than a moon orbiting another moon.
Telesto occupies the matching leading point ahead of Tethys. Together, the two tiny moons turn the otherwise abstract L4 and L5 positions into a visible orbital arrangement: one companion leads, Tethys anchors the shared orbit, and the other follows. Calypso is the trailing member of that three-body pattern.
Cassini images revealed an irregular body with overlapping craters and loose-looking material that softens parts of its surface. Calypso is also exceptionally reflective. Fine water-ice particles from Saturn's E ring continually strike its surface, helping create one of the brightest small moons in the Solar System.
12.8km
Key facts
- Category
- Moons
- Object class
- Trojan moon
- Scale fact
- 29.4 kmmaximum extent
- Host
- Saturn
Scale context
Where Calypso sits on the full axis
Together, these objects make the size change around Calypso easy to compare at a glance.
Sources
References for Calypso
Measurements and descriptive context are compiled by the Scale of Space team from the references below. If you find an error, please let us know.
- Calypso — Wikipedia
- Visual reference: Wikimedia Commons (NASA / JPL / SSI, Public domain)
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Scale of Space is a scroll-based journey through the universe, placing objects on a single logarithmic scale so you can compare size across an unbroken range.
Guides turn parts of that scale into curated essays, while focused views let you explore the same range through specific groups of objects.