Deimos (moon)

Deimos (IPA {{IPA|/?da?m?s/}} or {{IPA|/?di?m?s/}}; Greek Δείμος: "Dread"), is the smaller and outermost of Mars' two moons, named after Deimos from Greek Mythology. The adjectival form of the name is, presumably, Deimian.

Characteristics

Deimos is probably an asteroid that was perturbed by Jupiter into an orbit that allowed it to be captured by Mars, though this hypothesis is still in some dispute. Like most bodies of its size, Deimos is highly nonspherical with dimensions of 15×12×10 km.

Related Topics:
Jupiter - Orbit

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Deimos is composed of carbon-rich rock, much like C-type (carbonaceous chondrite) asteroids, and ice. It is cratered, but the surface is noticeably smoother than that of Phobos, caused by the partial filling of craters with regolith. The two largest craters, Swift and Voltaire, measure about 3 kilometers across.

Related Topics:
Carbon - C-type - Carbonaceous chondrite - Asteroid - Crater - Regolith

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As seen from Deimos, Mars would be 1000 times larger and 400 times brighter than the full Moon as seen from Earth, taking up a full 1/11 of the width of a celestial hemisphere.

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As seen from Mars, Deimos has an angular diameter of no more than 2.5' and would therefore appear starlike to the naked eye. At its brightest ("full moon") it would be about as bright as Venus is from Earth; at the first or third quarter phase it would be about as bright as Vega. When Deimos passes in front of the Sun its angular diameter is only about 2.5 times the angular diameter for Venus during a transit of Venus from Earth. With a small telescope, a Martian observer could see Deimos' phases, which take 1.2648 days to run their course (Deimos' synodic period).

Related Topics:
Venus - Vega - Deimos passes in front of the Sun - Transit of Venus from Earth - Synodic

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Unlike Phobos, which orbits so fast that it actually rises in the west and sets in the east, Deimos rises in the east and sets in the west. However, the orbital period of Deimos of about 30.4 hours exceeds the Martian solar day ("sol") of about 24.7 hours by such a small amount that it takes 2.7 days between rising and setting for an equatorial observer.

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Because Deimos' orbit is relatively close to Mars and has only a very small inclination to Mars' equator, it cannot be seen from Martian latitudes greater than 82.7°.

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