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How could Triton’s capture have disrupted Neptune’s original moons?
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Triton
Image of Triton, Neptune's largest satellite, captured by a camera aboard Voyager 2, 1989.
The capture of Triton by Neptune likely caused severe disruption to the planet's original satellite system, which had formed alongside the planet from a disk of protoplanetary material.
The process of capture and the subsequent circularization of Triton’s orbit would have resulted in the following impacts on existing moons:
- Ejection or Collision: Moons orbiting between Proteus and Nereid were likely ejected from the Neptunian system, collided with Neptune, or were absorbed by the molten, newly captured Triton.
- Orbital Alteration: Even moons closer to the planet were not immune to these gravitational disturbances. Their current orbits are likely significantly different from their original paths.
- Fragmentation: Existing moons may have been shattered, and the current inner moons (such as Naiad through Proteus) might be mere fragments of the original bodies that formed with Neptune.
- Nereid’s Orbit: The highly eccentric orbit of Nereid is considered a potential consequence of this chaotic capture process.
These events fundamentally reshaped the Neptunian system into its current configuration.1