Namaka

astronomy

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 17, 2026

Quick Summary

Namaka is a moon of the dwarf planet Haumea. It was discovered in 2005 and named after a water spirit, one of the daughters of the Hawaiian goddess Haumea. Namaka is the smaller of Haumea's two moons, with an orbital period of 18 days and a mass approximately 0.05 percent of Haumea's. Both Namaka and its sibling moon, Hi'iaka, are covered in water ice. Haumea itself is a dwarf planet located in the Kuiper belt, known for its elongated shape and rapid rotation.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

2 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Haumea
…hula, while the smaller moon, Namaka, is named after a water spirit. Hi‘iaka and Namaka have orbital periods of 49 and 18 days and masses about 0.5 and 0.05 percent that of Haumea, respectively. Both moons are covered in water ice. Like its parent body, Hi‘iaka has a fast rotational…
Read More
…hula, while the smaller moon, Namaka, is named after a water spirit. Hi‘iaka and Namaka have orbital periods of 49 and 18 days and masses about 0.5 and 0.05 percent that of Haumea, respectively. Both moons are covered in water ice. Like its parent body, Hi‘iaka has a fast rotational…
Read More