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Oberon is the outermost of the major moons of
the planet Uranus. It was discovered on January 11, 1787 by William Herschel. All of the moons of Uranus are named for characters from
Shakespeare or Alexander Pope: Names for the first four discovered moons of Uranus (Oberon, Titania, Ariel,
Umbriel) were given by John Herschel, the son of William. Oberon was named after Oberon, the king of the Faeries in A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Physical features
Oberon is composed of roughly 50% water ice, 30% silicate rock, and 20% methane-related carbon/nitrogen compounds. It has an old, heavily cratered, and icy surface which shows shows little evidence of
internal activity other than some unknown dark material that apparently covers the floors of many craters.
Scientists recognise only two types of geological feature on Oberon: craters and
chasmata. See List of geological features on Oberon.
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