Most Moons

[toobfreak]

It has long been given that Jupiter had the most moons by far of any planet in the solar system, now that honor has been upended by discoveries of 128 new moons around Saturn giving it more moons than all the rest of the planets put together, but I submit that is a false record. Saturn was originally just a planet like any other, a gas giant, then something happened not long ago (at least in galactic time) where two moons collided, an asteroid hit a moon, etc., and the moon was destroyed and the resulting rubble form the rings.

These new "moons" are nothing but some of the rubble from that impact, so while technically "moons," they are too small and not captured bodies like other moons but are "generated" moons.

MSN

 

[toobfreak]

I should point out the similarity with the Earth - approximately 4.6 billion years ago as the Earth was forming, a rogue planet estimated to be about the size of Mars which we call "Theia" struck a glancing blow to the Earth. When it did, it was destroyed and much of the Earth was destroyed as well, throwing up a huge cloud of rubble and debris with the heavier material falling back to Earth and the lighter materials (mostly silicates and aluminum) staying afloat eventually forming a ring.

So at that time, Earth was a ringed planet much as Saturn is now.

As time went on, that ring congealed together and formed the Moon we see today, so essentially, when you look at the Moon, you are seeing a body which is part Earth and part leftovers from Theia.

 

[ReinyDays]

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...............§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§≥≥≥≥≥≥.....................................................
...........................................................................................................eeeeeeeeeee....

ACK ... the new avatar is giving my ... cats epileptic fits ... can't ... focus ... must ... turn ... away ...

ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH ...

(Our Moon is the only one known that doesn't orbit along the host planet's equator ... she actually orbits (roughly) along the ecliptic with the other major planets ... presumably including Theia ... rotational inertia ...)

 

[toobfreak]

... the new avatar is giving my ... cats epileptic fits ... can't ... focus ... must ... turn ... away ...

Just for that, I am now sending a beam of x-rays your way which will slowly turn your brain to goo...

(Our Moon is the only one known that doesn't orbit along the host planet's equator ... she actually orbits (roughly) along the ecliptic with the other major planets ... presumably including Theia ... rotational inertia ...)

This only further supports the Theia planetary impactor theory, and also why the axis of the Earth is turned over to 23.5° from the normal plane of the solar system.

 

[Admiral Rockwell Tory]

Just for that, I am now sending a beam of x-rays your way which will slowly turn your brain to goo...



This only further supports the Theia planetary impactor theory, and also why the axis of the Earth is turned over to 23.5° from the normal plane of the solar system.

How do you explain Uranus having an axial tilt of 98 degrees?

 

[ReinyDays]

How do you explain Uranus having an axial tilt of 98 degrees?

... beam hurts ... unknown at this time ... the pain ... or why Venus is tilted 179º ... [retches] ... cats raking my flesh ... stop ... please ... eclipse aftermath ... [winces] ... lunatics still excited ... God help me ...

 

[toobfreak]

... beam hurts ... unknown at this time ... the pain ... or why Venus is tilted 179º ...

Obviously, all native planets formed of spinning dust and gas from the nascent solar cloud, so any planetary body spinning significantly off the solar plane must have been acted on by an external force at some point.

Studies show that most gas giants in other solar systems form close in near the star. Research shows that our gas and ice giants formed in closer to the Sun as well, but in our case, moved to the outside of the solar system, freeing up the rocky planets; along the way, there were many collisions.

Jupiter's gravity during its travels likely caused the asteroid belt.

Apparently a body about 1/30th the size of Uranus (about twice the size of Earth) impacted with Uranus being consumed by it knocking it permanently on its side.