Triton, Neptune's largest moon, was probably part of a two-body object similar to the Pluto-Charon system. This tandem might have been ripped apart when it strayed too close to the planet that Triton is now orbiting. The neptunian moon Triton weighs in at 1,4 times the mass of Pluto, making it the largest irregularly orbiting satellite in the Solar System, So how did this kept giant come to be where it is? On page 192 of this issue, Agnor and Hamilton advance a capture mechanism that, if correct, could have repercussions for the life stories of other, similar moons. A cohort of satellites surrounds all four giant planets in the Solar System - Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, These satellites are divided into two distinct groups, regular and irregular, according to their orbital characteristics.
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