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54m ago

Webb Spots Tiny New Moon Around Uranus, Raising Its Count to 29

Webb's long-exposure infrared imaging revealed a faint, six-mile-wide object in February, pending confirmation through peer review.

The moon, designated S/2025 U1, as well as 13 of the 28 other known moons orbiting the Uranus.
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Overview

  • The object, provisionally designated S/2025 U1, appears in ten 40-minute NIRCam exposures taken Feb. 2, 2025 under JWST program 6379.
  • It orbits about 35,000 miles (56,000 kilometers) from Uranus in a nearly circular, equatorial path between the moons Ophelia and Bianca.
  • Its size is estimated at roughly six miles (10 kilometers) across, based on an assumed reflectivity similar to other small Uranian satellites.
  • Researchers describe the detection as provisional pending peer review and follow-up observations to refine its characteristics.
  • An official name will require IAU approval, as the find highlights Uranus’s unusually crowded inner system and suggests more faint moons may be undiscovered.