The Dactyl (asteroid) reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Dactyl (asteroid)

(left) and Dacytl (right), as photographed by Galileo.]]

Dactyl, discovered in 1993, is a tiny asteroid (diameter 1.4 km) that orbits asteroid 243 Ida with a period of 1.54 days at an average distance of 108 km. The origins of Dactyl are unclear. The two main theories are that it and Ida formed at the same time, and that it was knocked loose by a later impact. Both theories have problems and cannot explain the situation satisfactorily.

Dactyl, found by the Galileo probe, was the first asteroid moon discovered.

See also: List of geological features on 243 Ida and Dactyl.

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