Pallene and her sisters

The Alkyonides in myth and in orbit.

Published 2026-10-23

Pallene is named after one of the Alkyonides, the seven daughters of the giant Alcyoneus.^[1][4]

The sisters

They were Alkippe, Anthe, Asteria, Drimo, Methone, Pallene and Phthonia.^[4]

A family of moons

Pallene, Methone and Anthe may have split from Mimas or Enceladus, or be the remains of a larger swarm.^[2]

Darker leading side

Pallene is 10–20% darker on its leading hemisphere than its trailing one.^[1]

Numbered citations link to the sources list on the Pallene overview page.