The Alkyonides: three sisters in Saturn’s sky

Anthe, Methone and Pallene share more than an orbit.

Published 2026-10-23

Anthe is named after one of the Alkyonides.^[1]

Seven sisters

The Alkyonides were the seven daughters of the giant Alcyoneus: Alkippe, Anthe, Asteria, Drimo, Methone, Pallene and Phthonia.^[4]

Three moons

Three of them — Anthe, Methone and Pallene — now name small moons orbiting between Mimas and Enceladus.^[2]

The name

Anthe means “flowery”.^[1]

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