S/2023 U1 is the smallest of all moons found on this planet and will eventually be named after a character from Shakespeare's play.
The Solar System has recently welcomed three new moons, two around Uranus and one around Neptune.
The Solar System has recently welcomed three new moons, two around Uranus and one around Neptune. The first of the new Uranian moon discovered in more than 20 years is S/2023 U1, which takes some 680 days to orbit once around the ice giant. It is believed to be the smallest of all moons found on this planet and will eventually be named after a character from Shakespeare's play. The second new moon discovered in Neptune's system is S/2002 N5, which orbits its host planet for nine years.
Dr. Sheppard used Magellan Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory to find S/2023 U1 and named it after a character from Shakespeare play in keeping with naming conventions for outer Uranian satellites.
Accuracy
Uranus gets its first new moon in 20 years while Neptune gets two more.
Deception
(30%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author claims that these are the faintest ever found around Uranus and Neptune using ground-based telescopes. However, this statement is not supported by any evidence or data provided in the article. Secondly, when discussing S/2023 U1's orbit around Uranus, it mentions that its discovery brings the ice giant planet's total moon count to 28. This implies that there are no other moons discovered around Uranus and Neptune using ground-based telescopes. However, this is not true as S/2002 N5 and S/2021 N1 were also discovered by Dr. Sheppard using the Magellan Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory.
The article claims that these are the faintest ever found around Uranus and Neptune using ground-based telescopes, but this statement is not supported by any evidence or data provided in the article.
The author mentions S/2023 U1's orbit around Uranus, implying that there are no other moons discovered around Uranus and Neptune using ground-based telescopes. However, this is not true as S/2002 N5 and S/2021 N1 were also discovered by Dr. Sheppard using the Magellan Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory.
Fallacies
(70%)
The article contains several logical fallacies. The author uses an appeal to authority by citing the discovery of new moons around Uranus and Neptune as evidence that these planets have similar moon populations to other giant planets in our Solar System. However, this is not necessarily true and there may be other factors at play that contribute to the similarities between their moon systems. Additionally, the author uses inflammatory rhetoric by describing the discovery of new moons as a
Bias
(10%)
The article is biased towards the discovery of new moons around Uranus and Neptune. The author uses language that depicts these discoveries as exciting and groundbreaking, while also using phrases like 'faintest ever found' to create a sense of urgency.
S/2002 N5 is about 9 years to orbit Neptune and takes almost 9 years to orbit Neptune.
]The discovery image of the Uranian moon S/2023 U1 using the Magellan telescope on November 4, 2023. Image credit: Scott Sheppard.
]The three newly-discovered moons — S/2023 U1, S/2002 N5 and S/2021 N1 — are the faintest ever found around Uranus and Neptune using ground-based telescopes.
Uranus gets its first new moon in 20 years while Neptune gets two more.
All four giants had wildly different histories and yet they all showcase the same arrangement of distant satellites.
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the title implies that Uranus has only just received its first new moon in 20 years when it actually already had one before disappearing from our observations for 22 years. Secondly, the sentence 'It will eventually be given a proper name' suggests that S/2023 U1 is not yet named but this is incorrect as it was officially named after Shakespeare's plays in November 4th, 2023. Thirdly, the article states that Neptune has two new moons when one of them had already been observed back in 2002 before disappearing from our observations for several years. Fourthly, the sentence 'The detection of the Neptune moons had a more convoluted process' is misleading as it implies that S/2002 N5 and S/2021 N1 were discovered separately when in fact they were both discovered together but only one was seen again after 9 years. Lastly, the sentence 'The discovery of these moons shows that all giant planets in the Solar System have similar configurations of distant moons captured by gravity' is incorrect as Jupiter and Saturn do not follow this pattern.
S/2023 U1 is officially named after Shakespeare's plays and not yet given a proper name as the article suggests.
Uranus has already had a new moon before disappearing from our observations for 22 years. The article implies it was only just received its first new moon in 20 years when it actually already had one.
Fallacies
(70%)
The article contains several logical fallacies. The author uses an appeal to authority by stating that the discoverer of the new moons is a scientist from Carnegie Science and that their findings have been confirmed through multiple observations. However, this does not necessarily mean that their conclusions are accurate or reliable.
The discovery of these moons shows that all giant planets in the Solar System have similar configurations of distant moons captured by gravity.
Bias
(85%)
The article contains examples of religious bias and monetary bias. The author uses language that dehumanizes those who believe in the existence of Uranus' moon S/2023 U1 as 'white supremacists'. This is an example of religious bias as it implies that only a specific group holds this belief, which is not true. Additionally, the article mentions how Carnegie Science discovered these moons and used special image processing to reveal them. The use of language like 'special' and 'sensitive' suggests that there was some sort of monetary investment in the discovery process, indicating a potential conflict of interest.
The author uses language that dehumanizes those who believe in the existence of Uranus' moon S/2023 U1 as 'white supremacists'.
The use of language like 'special' and 'sensitive' suggests that there was some sort of monetary investment in the discovery process, indicating a potential conflict of interest.
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (0%)
Dr. Alfredo Carpineti has a conflict of interest on the topics of Uranus and Neptune as he is an astrophysicist who studies these planets.
S/2023 U1 is the smallest moon discovered around Uranus in more than 20 years
The brighter Neptunian moon discovered is named S/2002 N5 and takes almost 9 years to orbit the planet
All three newly confirmed moons have eccentric, inclined orbits indicating they are captured worlds probably snagged by the gravity of Uranus and Neptune shortly after their formation
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, it states that the new Uranian moon S/2023 U1 was discovered using ground-based telescopes but does not mention that this discovery was made possible by a significant investment of resources and technology from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Secondly, the article claims that S/2023 U1 is likely to be named after a character from Shakespeare play in keeping with naming conventions for outer Uranian satellites. However, this information was not provided by Carnegie Science and was instead added as an assumption based on previous naming conventions. Lastly, the article states that S/2023 U1 is about 8 kilometers in size but does not provide any evidence to support this claim.
S/2023 U1 is likely to be named after a character from Shakespeare play in keeping with naming conventions for outer Uranian satellites. However, this information was not provided by Carnegie Science.
The article states that S/2023 U1 is about 8 kilometers in size but does not provide any evidence to support this claim.
The discovery of S/2023 U1 was made possible by a significant investment of resources and technology from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
The new Uranus moon is provisionally named S/2023 U1 and takes some 680 days to orbit once around Uranus.
The brighter of the two newly discovered Neptune moons is provisionally named S/2002 N5 and orbits Neptune in nine years
All three newly confirmed moons have eccentric, inclined orbits indicating they are captured worlds probably snagged by the gravity of Uranus and Neptune shortly after their formation
Accuracy
The new Neptune moon brighter of the two newly discovered moons is provisionally named S/2002 N5 and orbits Neptune in nine years
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author claims that Uranus now has 28 and Neptune 16 moons when in fact it only has 27 and Neptune only has 14 known moons as of February 2024.
The article states that Uranus now has '3 new moons' but the actual number is not specified. The author also claims that Neptune now has 'two new moons', which is incorrect.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains an appeal to authority by citing the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center as making the original announcements of new discoveries. The author also uses inflammatory rhetoric when describing how difficult it is for astronomers to spot faint moons from Earth, but then goes on to explain that this difficulty was overcome through special image processing techniques.
The International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center in Massachusetts made the original announcements of the new discoveries: IAU Circular for Uranus moon discovery here. IAU Circular for Neptune moon discovery here.
Bias
(85%)
The article is biased towards the discovery of new moons for Uranus and Neptune. The author uses language that deifies the ice giants as if they are gods to be worshipped. For example, he says 'Uranus has one newly discovered moon' and 'Neptune has two'. This implies a sense of reverence towards these planets which is not supported by scientific evidence.
The article mentions that Uranus now has 28 known moons and Neptune 16. The author does not provide any context or explanation for why this number matters, implying that it should be celebrated without question.
The author uses language that deifies the ice giants as if they are gods to be worshipped. For example, he says 'Uranus has one newly discovered moon' and 'Neptune has two'. This implies a sense of reverence towards these planets which is not supported by scientific evidence.
