name the four moons after the lovers of Zeus

Spotlight:

Jupiter and its Moons

What did Galileo call the moons he spotted orbiting Jupiter? When — exactly four hundred years ago today, on January 7, 1610 — Galileo Galilei first reported seeing the moons orbiting Jupiter, he called them "Cosmica Sidera" or "Cosimo's Stars." They were named for his patron, the grand duke of Tuscany, Cosimo II de' Medici. Cosimo suggested the name be changed to "Medicea Sidera" ("Medici's Stars") to honor all four Medici brothers, and Galileo honored his wishes. But, in fact, it was astronomer Simon Marius, who claimed to have sighted the moons at the same time as Galileo, who chose the names that we still use to this day. He decided to name them after the lovers of Zeus. The four moons are called Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto.

Quote:

"I've loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night." — Galileo Galilei