On This Day
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William Lassell discovers Ariel and Umbriel, satellites of Uranus

There are 29 known moons of the planet Uranus. The 27 with names are named after characters that appear in, or are mentioned in William Shakespeare's plays and Alexander Pope's poem The Rape of the...

There are 29 known moons of the planet Uranus. The 27 with names are named after characters that appear in, or are mentioned in William Shakespeare's plays and Alexander Pope's poem The Rape of the Lock. Uranus's moons are divided into three groups: fourteen inner moons, five major moons, and ten irregular moons. The inner and major moons all have prograde orbits and are cumulatively classified as regular moons. In contrast, the orbits of the irregular moons are distant, highly inclined, and mostly retrograde.

The inner moons are small dark bodies that share common properties and origins with Uranus's rings.

Historical Significance

There are 29 known moons of the planet Uranus.

Events Before

  1. Senator Henry Clay drafts the Compromise of 1850 to defuse tensions between slave states and free states over territorie

    Senator Henry Clay drafts the Compromise of 1850 to defuse tensions between slave states and free states over territories won during the Mexican–American War

  2. French writer and playwright Honoré de Balzac marries Ewelina Hańska in Berdyczów, Ukraine

    French writer and playwright Honoré de Balzac marries Ewelina Hańska in Berdyczów, Ukraine

  3. American Union Army General William Tecumseh Sherman (30) weds Eleanor Boyle Ewing in Washington, D.C., until her death

    American Union Army General William Tecumseh Sherman (30) weds Eleanor Boyle Ewing in Washington, D.C., until her death in 1888

  4. Poet Alfred Tennyson (40) weds Emily Sellwood (36)

    Poet Alfred Tennyson (40) weds Emily Sellwood (36)

  5. First public demonstration of ice made via refrigeration by Florida physician John Gorrie

    First public demonstration of ice made via refrigeration by Florida physician John Gorrie

Events After

  1. National debt of Britain and Ireland is £765,126,582

    National debt of Britain and Ireland is £765,126,582

  2. Fugitive slave Frederick Douglass delivers his 'What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?' speech to the Ladies' Anti-Sla

    Fugitive slave Frederick Douglass delivers his 'What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?' speech to the Ladies' Anti-Slavery Society in Rochester, condemning the celebration as a hypocritical sham

  3. Future US President Rutherford B. Hayes (30) weds teetotaler and abolitionist Lucy Webb (21)

    Future US President Rutherford B. Hayes (30) weds teetotaler and abolitionist Lucy Webb (21)

  4. First Chinese immigrants arrive in Hawaii

    First Chinese immigrants arrive in Hawaii

  5. British recognize independence of Transvaal (in South Africa)

    British recognize independence of Transvaal (in South Africa)

More from the 1850s

birth

Alice Mary Robertson is born

Alice Mary Robertson, American politician, known for american politician, was born on 1854-01-02.

birth

Tim Keefe is born

Tim Keefe, American athlete, known for american baseball player, was born on 1857-01-01.

City of Glasgow steamer inaugurates Philadelphia-Liverpool line

City of Glasgow steamer inaugurates Philadelphia-Liverpool line

National debt of Britain and Ireland is £765,126,582

National debt of Britain and Ireland is £765,126,582

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on October 24, 1851?
There are 29 known moons of the planet Uranus. The 27 with names are named after characters that appear in, or are mentioned in William Shakespeare's plays and Alexander Pope's poem The Rape of the Lock. Uranus's moons are divided into three groups: fourteen inner moons, five major moons, and ten irregular moons.
Why is William Lassell discovers Ariel and Umbriel, satellites of Uranus significant?
There are 29 known moons of the planet Uranus.

Explore More

October 24 in HistoryYear 1851