Unlike Most Moons in the Solar System, Triton Orbits its Planet Backwards

Most moons in the solar system all orbit their host planet in the same direction, but Neptune has a bit of a strange player in that its largest moon, Triton, actually orbits the planet in the opposite direction as other Moons throughout the solar system do.

The discrepancy has scientists scratching their heads because it makes no sense. With the orbital forces at work in our solar system, there is a reason that most objects orbit in a solitary direction.

Triton, for whatever reason, seems to defy this. Several theories exist, but there are no explanations that completely explain the phenomenon.

Smooth metallic surfaces on Triton have even given rise to theories that the moon may not even be a natural moon at all, but that it could even be an artificial planet of sorts. Of course, such a theory is somewhat far-fetched.