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A R C H I V E S

Calypso, one of the many moons of the Giant Gas Planet Saturn; it was discovered in 1980, from ground-based observations, by Astroonomers Dan Pascu, P. Kenneth Seidelmann, William A. Baum and Douglas G. Currie. At that time, Calypso, as the normal international practice in the matter of nomenclature of newly discovered Celestial Bodies requires, was provisionally designated S/1980 S 25 (meaning that it was the 25th natural satellite of Saturn which had so far been discovered).

In 1983, this new moon of Saturn was officially named Calypso (but it was also designated as Saturn XIV or Tethys C). Calypso, in fact, is co-orbital with the moon Tethys, and resides in Tethys' Trailing Lagrangian Point (L5), 60° behind Tethys.

This relationship was first identified by Dr Seidelmann et al., in 1981. The moon Telesto also resides in the other (Leading) Lagrangian Point of Tethys, 60° in the other direction from Tethys. Calypso and Telesto have been afterwards termed "Tethys Trojans", by analogy to the Trojan Asteroids, and they are now half of the four presently known Trojan Moons (remember that, in Astronomy, a Trojan is a Minor Planet or a Natural Satellite - such as a natural moon or a moonlet - that shares its orbit with another Planet or an even larger moon, but does not collide with it because it orbits around one of the two Lagrangian Points of Gravitational Stability - also known as Trojan Points -, L4 and L5, which lie approximately 60° ahead of and behind the larger Celestial Body, respectively).

Like many other small Saturnian moons and small Asteroids, Calypso is irregularly shaped, has overlapping large craters, and appears to also have loose Surface Material (probably snow-like water-ice partcles) capable of smoothing the Craters' appearance. As a matter of fact, and as a further evidence of the circumstance that Calypso may likely be covered by water-ice particles, you have to notice that its Surface is one of the most reflective (at visual wavelengths) in the whole Solar System, with a Visual Geometric Albedo of 1.34.

This very high Albedo is the result of the sandblasting of particles from Saturn's "E" Ring: a faint Ring composed of small, water-ice particles most likely generated by Enceladus' South Polar Geysers.