Image Source Voyager 2 Photomosaic
Triton is the largest and the first moon of the planet Neptune to be discovered on 10 Oct 1846, by an English astronomer William Lassell. The orbital period around Neptune is 5.876854 days and average orbital speed is 4.39 km/s. It has a retrograde orbit, an orbit in the opposite direction to Neptune. It is the seventh largest moon and the sixteenth-largest object in the Solar System with a diameter of 2,710 km. Triton was first believed to have been a dwarf planet belonging to the Kuiper belt, because of the retrograde orbit and a composition similar to that of Pluto. The moon is geologically active and its surface has geysers erupting nitrogen gas.
Triton has more than 99.5% of the total mass known to orbit Neptune, the orbiting mass includes the other 13 moons of the planet and the planet's rings. The surface of the moon is covered with a transparent layer of frozen nitrogen. The crust consists of 55% nitrogen ice, 15-35% water ice and 10-20% dry ice (frozen carbon dioxide). The surface area of the moon is 23 million sq km, which is 4.5% of Earth. Triton reflects 60-95% of the sunlight that reaches it, in comparison to Earth's moon which reflects only 11%.
Triton has a very weak nitrogen atmosphere, with traces of carbon monoxide and very small amounts of methane. Rough air currents on the surface create a troposphere (a region in space close to the surface where weather conditions happen) which rises to an altitude of 8 km. Streaks on Triton's surface suggest that seasonal winds blow on the troposphere which is capable of moving material of size over a micrometre.
Triton was photographed in a single encounter in 1989 by Voyager 2 from a distance of 40,000 km. 40% of Triton's surface imaged by the space probe reveals blocky outcrops, troughs, ridges, furrows, plateaus, hollows, icy plains, and a few craters. The surface is relatively flat with a few impact craters on Triton.
Source: Wikipedia
If you liked my post, then please give an Upvote and Resteem it or follow me, you will be thanked.
