| Discovery | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discovered by | Charles Kowal | ||||||
| Discovered in | 1974 | Orbital characteristics | |||||
| Mean radius | ~11,094,000 km | ||||||
| Eccentricity | ~0.15 | ||||||
| Orbital period | ~240.5d | ||||||
| Inclination | 1.5 - 50.6° | ||||||
| Is a satellite of | Jupiter | ||||||
| Physical characteristics | |||||||
| Equatorial diameter | 20 km | ||||||
| Surface area | km2 | ||||||
| Mass | 1.09×1016 kg | ||||||
| Mean density | 2.6 g/cm3 | ||||||
| Surface gravity | 0.073 m/s2 | ||||||
| Rotation period | ? | ||||||
| Axial tilt | ?° | ||||||
| Albedo | |||||||
| Surface temp |
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| Atmospheric pressure | 0 kPa | ||||||
Leda (pronounced "LEE duh") is the smallest of Jupiter's named moonss. It was discovered by Charles Kowal at Mount Palomar in 1974, and is named after the queen of Sparta who was the mother of Castor, Polydeuces, Clytemnestra and Helen of Troy (Zeus, in the form of a swan, was the father). It was the last Jovian moon to be discovered by Earth-based observers.