There are 288 discovered natural satellites – or moons, as they are colloquially known – in the Solar system. Most of these are found in the outer gas giants. However, many of these have not received proper names as they were discovered recently and have yet to be confirmed. Only 164 moons have proper names.
Out of those, there is one moon whose name starts with the letter Y.
| Name | Planet | Name meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Ymir | Saturn | Ancestor to all the frost giants in Norse mythology. Also known as Aurgelmir, Brimir, or Bláinn |
Ymir
Ymir is an irregular moon of Saturn discovered in 2000 by Brett Gladman and his team. Named after the primordial frost giant in Norse mythology who was the ancestor of all Jötnar (giants) and from whose body the world was created, this moon is approximately 18 kilometers in diameter. Also known as Aurgelmir, Brimir, or Bláinn in Norse mythology, Ymir follows a retrograde orbit around Saturn, suggesting it was captured by the planet’s gravity rather than forming alongside it. It belongs to the Norse group of irregular satellites and has one of the more distant orbits among Saturn’s moons, taking about 1,315 days to complete one orbit. The moon’s surface is very dark, reflecting only about 6% of the sunlight that hits it.
Click on a letter below for a list of moons that begin with it.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
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For more on how moons are named check out this article.