New Uranus moon discovered by James Webb space telescope
The moon was spotted thanks to the James Webb telescope being able to do 40 minute long exposures. This is when the camera's shutter stays open to let as much light in as possible, allowing scientists to see the undiscovered moon.It's the smallest and faintest of Uranus' inner moons, so there's still a lot to learn and find out about S/2025 U1.And that name is only temporary - its official name will be approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), which gives names to objects found in space.The other moons of Uranus are all named after characters from classic writers William Shakespeare and Alexander Pope, with names like Desdemona and Ophelia.
Along with Neptune, Uranus is an ice giant that's extremely cold and windy.It appears blue because of the methane that makes up some of its atmosphere.So far, Uranus has only been visited by the Voyager 2 spacecraft back in 1986, where it missed new moon S/2025 U1.The new finding will be peer-reviewed soon, which means it'll be double checked by other scientists working in the same area.
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