They are characters from Shakespearean plays The Tempest and A Midsummer Night's Dream : Ariel, Miranda, and Phoebe, but scientists have used their names for another purpose. What is it?

The connection between Shakespearean theater and the outer solar system began with John Herschel, son of the astronomer who discovered Uranus. In the 1850s, he decided to name the planet's four known moons not after figures from classical mythology, but from English literature. This is why Ariel, a mischievous spirit, and Miranda, a compassionate maiden from *The Tempest*, lend their names to two of the icy satellites orbiting the seventh planet. This tradition has continued, with nearly all of Uranus's 27 moons named for characters from the works of William Shakespeare and Alexander Pope.

Phoebe, however, is the outlier in this group because it orbits a different gas giant: Saturn. The naming system for Saturn's satellites follows a more conventional path, drawing primarily from the Titans of Greek mythology. Phoebe fits this theme perfectly, as she was a Titaness associated with prophecy and the intellect. Therefore, while Ariel and Miranda join a celestial cast of literary characters like Oberon and Titania around Uranus, Phoebe belongs to a different mythological family orbiting a different world entirely.