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NASA’s Webb telescope finds a new tiny moon around Uranus

The moon appears to be just six miles wide.

This is an image provided by NASA shows the planet Uranus, taken by the spacecraft Voyager 2 in 1986. (NASA via AP)
This is an image provided by NASA shows the planet Uranus, taken by the spacecraft Voyager 2 in 1986. (NASA via AP)
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By ADITHI RAMAKRISHNAN, AP Science Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — The Webb Space Telescope has spotted a new tiny moon .

The , announced Tuesday by NASA, appears to be just six miles wide. It was spotted by the telescope’s near-infrared camera during observations in February.

Scientists think it hid for so long — even eluding the during its flyby about 40 years ago — because of its faintness and small size.

Uranus has 28 known moons that are named after characters from Shakespeare and Alexander Pope. About half are smaller and orbit the planet at closer range. This newest addition, still nameless, ups the planetap total moon count to 29.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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