Deimos (moon)

High school (ages 12+)
Space & Astronomy

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/deimos-moon

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the orbital semi-major axis?23,460 kilometers (14,580 miles)
2. What is the orbital eccentricity?0.00035
3. What is Deimos and how big is it?Deimos is Mars's smaller moon, about 15 km long, 12 km wide, and 11 km tall—roughly the size of a small town.
4. Why does Deimos look like a potato?Its shape is irregular and potato‑like because it is a captured asteroid, not formed from a big cloud of gas and dust.

Albedo: The measure of how much light a surface reflects.
Sidereal Rotation Period: The time it takes a planet to complete one rotation relative to the stars.
Tidal Forces: Gravitational forces exerted by a celestial body that cause stretching or distortion.