Phobos (moon) - Discovery

Discovery

Phobos was discovered by astronomer Asaph Hall on August 18, 1877, at the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C., at about 09:14 Greenwich Mean Time (contemporary sources, using the pre-1925 astronomical convention that began the day at noon, give the time of discovery as August 17 at 16:06 Washington mean time). Hall also discovered Deimos, Mars's other moon, on August 12, 1877 at about 07:48 UTC. The names, originally spelled Phobus and Deimus respectively, were suggested by Henry Madan (1838–1901), Science Master of Eton, based on Book XV of the Iliad, in which the god Ares summons Dread (Deimos) and Fear (Phobos).

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