Mayda Insula
Mayda Insula is an island in the Kraken Mare. It is a body of liquid composed mostly of methane, on Saturn's largest moon Titan. Mayda Insula is the first island (insula) to be named on a planet or moon other than Earth.
Discovery and naming[change | change source]
Mayda Insula was discovered by the Cassini–Huygens mission to Saturn. Its name was approved by the International Astronomical Union Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature on April 11, 2008.[1] It became the first named island anywhere other than earth.[2] However, there is a possibility that Mayda Insula is actually peninsular. A peninsular is a piece of land that is connected to the mainland by another strip of land.[3] All of the island on Titan have been named after legendary islands. "Mayda Insula" was named after a legendary island Mayda which was thought to exist in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean.[2] Its name was approved the same day as the names of Kraken Mare and Ligeia Mare.[1]
In popular culture[change | change source]
Mayda Insula was mentioned in Michael Carroll's novel On the Shores of Titan's Farthest Sea: A Scientific Novel. The 39th chapter of the book is titled "The Hunchback of Mayda Insula".[4]
Related pages[change | change source]
References[change | change source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Titan Mare and Insula Names". Astrogeology Science Center. USGS. April 11, 2008. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Nomenclature Search Results, Feature Type: Insula, insulae". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN). Retrieved June 28, 2017.
- ↑ "PIA09180: Titan: Larger and Larger Lakes". Photojournal. NASA/JPL-Caltech. February 27, 2007. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
- ↑ Carroll, Michael (2015). On the Shores of Titan's Farthest Sea: A Scientific Novel. Heidelberg, Germany: Springer. ISBN 3319177591.