On this day in 1787 - January 11th - William Herschel discovered two moons of Uranus.

Herschel had discovered the planet Uranus in 1781, the first planet ever to be discovered - the others had been known since antiquity. We now know of 27 moons in the Uranian system, and Herschel discovered the first two: Titania and Oberon, though he didn't name them.

Over seventy years later William Lassell discovered two more moons of Uranus, and asked John Herschel, William's son, for suggestions for naming the four known moons. Herschel opted for literature rather than mythology and subsequent moons have also been named from Shakespeare.

You can find out more about the Literary Moons of Uranus.

Last edited by Mona - Astronomy; 01/14/16 12:42 AM.