Who discovered the planet Saturn. History of discoveries

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System in terms of diameter and mass. Often, Saturn is called fraternal planets. When compared, it becomes clear why Saturn and Jupiter were designated as relatives. From the composition of their atmosphere to their rotational patterns, the two planets are very similar. It is in honor of this similarity that in Roman mythology Saturn was named after the father of the god Jupiter.

A unique feature of Saturn is the fact that this planet is the least dense in the solar system. Despite Saturn's dense, solid core, the planet's large gaseous outer layer brings the planet's average density to only 687 kg/m3. As a result, it turns out that Saturn’s density is less than that of water, and if it were the size of a matchbox, it would easily float down the flow of a spring stream.

Orbit and rotation of Saturn

The average orbital distance of Saturn is 1.43 x 109 km. This means that Saturn is 9.5 times farther from the Sun than the total distance from the Earth to the Sun. As a result, it takes sunlight approximately an hour and twenty minutes to reach the planet. In addition, taking into account Saturn's distance from the Sun, the length of the year on the planet is 10.756 Earth days; that is, about 29.5 Earth years.

The eccentricity of Saturn's orbit is the third largest after and. As a result of such a large eccentricity, the distance between the planet's perihelion (1.35 x 109 km) and aphelion (1.50 x 109 km) is quite significant - about 1.54 x 108 km.

Saturn's axial tilt, which is 26.73 degrees, is very similar to Earth's, and this explains the presence of the same seasons on the planet as on Earth. However, due to Saturn's distance from the Sun, it receives significantly less sunlight during the year and for this reason the seasons on Saturn are much more blurred than on Earth.

Talking about the rotation of Saturn is just as interesting as talking about the rotation of Jupiter. With a rotation speed of approximately 10 hours 45 minutes, Saturn is second only to Jupiter, which is the fastest rotating planet in the solar system. Such extreme rates of rotation no doubt affect the shape of the planet, giving it the shape of a spheroid, that is, a sphere that bulges out somewhat at the equator.

The second surprising feature of Saturn's rotation is the different rotation rates between different apparent latitudes. This phenomenon is formed as a result of the fact that the predominant substance in the composition of Saturn is gas rather than solid.

The ring system of Saturn is the most famous in the solar system. The rings themselves are made mostly of billions of tiny ice particles, as well as dust and other comical debris. This composition explains why the rings are visible from Earth through telescopes - ice has a very high rate of reflection of sunlight.

There are seven broad classifications among the rings: A, B, C, D, E, F, G. Each ring is named according to the English alphabet in order of frequency of discovery. The most visible rings from Earth are A, B and C. In fact, each ring is made up of thousands of smaller rings literally pressed against each other. But there are gaps between the main rings. The gap between rings A and B is the largest of these gaps at 4,700 km.

The main rings begin approximately 7,000 km above Saturn's equator and extend for another 73,000 km. It is interesting to note that although this is a very significant radius, the actual thickness of the rings is no more than one kilometer.

The most common theory to explain the formation of the rings is that a medium-sized satellite in Saturn's orbit, under the influence of tidal forces, disintegrated when its orbit became too close to Saturn.

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the last of the planets known to ancient civilizations. It is believed that it was first observed by the inhabitants of Babylon.
Saturn is one of the five planets that can be seen with the naked eye. It is also the fifth brightest object in the solar system.
In Roman mythology, Saturn was the father of Jupiter, the king of the gods. This ratio is due to the similarity of the planets of the same name, in particular in size and composition.
Saturn releases more energy than it receives from the Sun. It is believed that this feature is due to the gravitational compression of the planet and the friction of the large amount of helium in its atmosphere.
Saturn takes 29.4 Earth years to complete its orbit around the Sun. Such slow motion relative to the stars was the reason for the ancient Assyrians to designate the planet as “Lubadsagush”, which means “the oldest of the old”.
Saturn has the fastest winds in our solar system. The speed of these winds has been measured, the maximum value being about 1800 kilometers per hour.
Saturn is the least dense planet in the solar system. The planet is mostly made of hydrogen and has a density less than that of water - which technically means Saturn will float.
Saturn has more than 150 moons. All of these satellites have an icy surface. The largest of them are Titan and Rhea. Enceladus is a very interesting satellite, as scientists are sure that a water ocean is hidden under its icy crust.

Saturn's moon Titan is the second largest moon in the solar system, after Jupiter's moon Ganymede. Titan has a complex and dense atmosphere consisting mainly of nitrogen, water ice and rock. Titan's frozen surface has liquid lakes of methane and a topography covered in liquid nitrogen. Because of this, researchers believe that if Titan is a haven for life, then this life will be fundamentally different from earthly life.
Saturn is the flattest of the eight planets. Its polar diameter is 90% of its equatorial diameter. This is due to the fact that the low-density planet has a high rotation speed - a revolution around its axis takes Saturn 10 hours and 34 minutes.
Oval-shaped storms occur on Saturn, which are similar in structure to those that occur on Jupiter. Scientists believe that this pattern of clouds around Saturn's north pole may be a true example of the existence of atmospheric waves in the upper clouds. There is also a vortex above the south pole of Saturn, which in its shape is very similar to hurricane storms that occur on Earth.
Through telescope lenses, Saturn is usually visible in a pale yellow color. This is because its upper atmosphere contains ammonia crystals. Below this top layer are clouds that are primarily composed of water ice. Even lower, layers of icy sulfur and cold mixtures of hydrogen.

The planet Saturn is one of the most famous and interesting planets in the solar system. Everyone knows about Saturn with its rings, even those who have never heard anything about the existence of, for example, Neptune.

Perhaps, in many respects, he gained such fame thanks to astrology, however, from a purely scientific point of view, this planet is of great interest. And amateur astronomers love to observe this beautiful planet because of the ease of observation and the beautiful spectacle.

Such an unusual and large planet as Saturn, of course, has some unusual properties. With many satellites and huge rings, Saturn forms a miniature solar system, which has a lot of interesting things. Here are some interesting facts about Saturn:

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun, and the last one known since ancient times. The next one was discovered with the help of a telescope, and even with the help of calculations.
Saturn is the second largest planet in the solar system after Jupiter. This is also a gas giant that does not have a solid surface.
The average density of Saturn is less than the density of water, moreover, by half. In a huge pool he would float almost like foam.
The planet Saturn is inclined to the plane of its orbit, so its seasons change, each lasting 7 years.
Saturn currently has 62 satellites, but this number is not final. Perhaps others will open. Only Jupiter has more satellites. Update: On October 7, 2019, the discovery of another 20 new satellites was reported, and now Saturn has 82 of them, 3 more than Jupiter. Saturn holds the record for the number of satellites.
- the second largest in the Solar System, after Ganymede, the satellite. It is 50% larger than the Moon and even slightly larger than Mercury.
A subglacial ocean may exist on Saturn's moon Enceladus. It is possible that some organic life could be found there.
Saturn's shape is not spherical. It rotates very quickly - a day lasts less than 11 hours, so it has a shape flattened at the poles.
The planet Saturn emits more energy than it receives from the Sun, as does Jupiter.
The wind speed on Saturn can reach 1800 m/s - this is faster than the speed of sound.
The planet Saturn does not have a solid surface. With depth, the gas - mainly hydrogen and helium - simply becomes denser until it turns into a liquid and then into a metallic state.
There is a strange hexagonal formation at the poles of Saturn.
There are auroras on Saturn.
Saturn's magnetic field is one of the most powerful in the solar system, extending over a million kilometers from the planet. Near the planet there are powerful radiation belts that are dangerous for the electronics of space probes.
A year on Saturn lasts 29.5 years. How long does it take for the planet to revolve around the Sun?

Of course, these are not all the interesting facts about Saturn - this world is too diverse and complex.

Characteristics of the planet Saturn

In the wonderful movie “Saturn - Lord of the Rings”, which you can watch, the announcer says - if there is a planet that conveys the splendor, mystery and horror of the Universe, then it is Saturn.” This is true.

Saturn is magnificent - it is a giant framed by huge rings. It is mysterious - many of the processes that occur there are still incomprehensible. And it is terrible, because terrible things happen on Saturn in our understanding - winds up to 1800 m/s, thunderstorms hundreds and thousands of times stronger than ours, helium rains, and much more.

Saturn is a giant planet, the second largest after Jupiter. The diameter of the planet is 120 thousand kilometers versus 143 thousand. It is 9.4 times larger than Earth, and could accommodate 763 planets like ours.

However, at its large size, Saturn is quite light - its density is less than that of water, because most of this huge ball is made up of light hydrogen and helium. If Saturn is placed in a huge pool, it will not drown, but will float! The density of Saturn is 8 times less than that of Earth. The second planet after it in terms of density is .

Comparative sizes of planets

Despite its enormous size, Saturn's gravity is only 91% that of Earth, although its total mass is 95 times greater than that of Earth. If we were there, we wouldn’t see much of a difference in the force of gravity, of course, if we discard other factors that would simply kill us.

Saturn, despite its gigantic size, rotates around its axis much faster than the Earth - a day there lasts from 10 hours 39 minutes to 10 hours 46 minutes. This difference is explained by the fact that the upper layers of Saturn are predominantly gaseous, so it rotates at different latitudes at different speeds.

A year on Saturn lasts 29.7 of our years. Since the planet has an axis tilt, then, like us, there is a change of seasons, which generates a large number of strong hurricanes in the atmosphere. The distance from the Sun varies due to its somewhat elongated orbit, and averages 9.58 AU.

Saturn's moons

To date, 82 satellites of various sizes have been discovered around Saturn. This is more than any other planet, and even 3 more than Jupiter. Moreover, 40% of all satellites in the solar system revolve around Saturn. On October 7, 2019, a group of scientists announced the discovery of 20 new satellites at once, which made Saturn the record holder. Before this, 62 satellites were known.

One of the largest (second after Ganymede) satellites of the solar system rotates around Saturn. It is almost twice the size of the Moon, and even larger than Mercury, but smaller. Titan is the second and only satellite with its own atmosphere of nitrogen with admixtures of methane and other gases. Atmospheric pressure on the surface is one and a half times greater than on Earth, although the gravity there is only 1/7 of that on Earth.

Titanium is the largest source of hydrocarbons. There are literally lakes and rivers of liquid methane and ethane. In addition, there are cryogeysers, and in general Titan is in many ways similar to Earth at the early stage of its existence. Perhaps it will be possible to find primitive forms of life there. It is also the only satellite to receive a lander - that was Huygens, which landed there on January 14, 2005.

Such views on Titan, Saturn's moon.

Enceladus is the sixth largest moon of Saturn, with a diameter of about 500 km, and is of particular interest for research. It is one of the three satellites with active volcanic activity (the other two are Triton). There are a large number of cryogeysers that emit water to great heights. It is possible that Saturn's tidal influences create enough energy in the moon's interior for liquid water to exist there.

Geysers of Enceladus photographed by Cassini.

A subsurface ocean is also possible on the moons of Jupiter and Ganymede. Enceladus's orbit is in the F ring, and the water escaping from it feeds this ring.

Saturn also has several other large satellites - Rhea, Iapetus, Dione, Tethys. They were one of the first to be discovered due to their size and visibility in fairly weak telescopes. Each of these satellites represents its own unique world.

Famous rings of Saturn

The rings of Saturn are its “calling card”, and it is thanks to them that this planet is so famous. It is difficult to imagine Saturn without rings - it would be just an inconspicuous whitish ball.

Which planet has rings similar to Saturn's? There are no such things in our system, although other gas giants also have rings - Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune. But there they are very thin, sparse, and not visible from Earth. Saturn's rings are clearly visible even with a weak telescope.

The rings were first discovered by Galileo Galilei in 1610 using his homemade telescope. However, he saw different rings than we see. To him they looked like two strange rounded balls on the sides of the planet - the image quality in Galileo’s 20x telescope was so-so, so he decided that he was seeing two large satellites. After 2 years, he observed Saturn again, but did not find these formations, and was very puzzled.

The diameter of the ring is indicated slightly differently in different sources - about 280 thousand kilometers. The ring itself is not continuous at all, but consists of smaller rings of different widths, separated by intervals of also different widths - tens and hundreds of kilometers. All rings are designated by letters, and the spaces are called slits and have names. The largest gap is between rings A and B, and is called the Cassini gap - it can be seen with an amateur telescope, and the width of this gap is 4700 km.

The rings of Saturn are not at all continuous, as it seems at first glance. This is not one single disk, but many small particles that rotate in their orbits at the level of the planet’s equator. The size of these particles is very different - from the smallest dust to stones and blocks of several tens of meters. Their predominant composition is ordinary water ice. Since ice has a high albedo - reflective ability, the rings are clearly visible, although their thickness is only about a kilometer at the “thickest” place.

As Saturn and the Earth revolve around the Sun, we can see how the rings either open wider and then disappear completely - the period of this phenomenon is 7 years. This happens due to the tilt of Saturn’s axis, and therefore the rings, which are located strictly along the equator.

By the way, this is why Galileo was unable to discover the ring of Saturn in 1612. It’s just that at that moment it was located “edge-on” to the Earth, and with a thickness of only a kilometer it is simply impossible to see from such a distance.

The origin of Saturn's rings is still unknown. There are several theories:

The rings were formed at the birth of the planet itself; it is like a building material that was never used.
At some point, a large body approached Saturn, which was destroyed, and rings were formed from its debris.
Saturn was once orbited by several large moons similar to Titan. Over time, their orbit turned into a spiral, bringing them closer to the planet and inevitable death. As they approached, the satellites were destroyed, generating a lot of debris. These fragments remained in orbit, colliding and fragmenting more and more, and over time they formed the rings that we see now.

Further research will show which version of events is correct. However, it is clear that the rings of Saturn are a temporary phenomenon. After some time, the planet will absorb all their material - the debris leaves orbit and falls onto it. If the rings are not fed with material, they will become smaller over time until they disappear completely. Of course, this will not happen in one million years.

Observing Saturn through a telescope

Saturn in the sky looks like a fairly bright star in the south, and can be observed even in a small . This is especially good to do during oppositions, which occur once a year - the planet looks like a 0 magnitude star and has an angular size of 18”. List of upcoming confrontations:

June 15, 2017.
June 27, 2018.
July 9, 2019.
July 20, 2020.

These days, the brilliance of Saturn is even greater than that of Jupiter, although it is much further away. This is explained by the fact that the rings also reflect a lot of light, so the total reflection area is much larger.

You can even see the rings of Saturn with binoculars, although you will have to try to distinguish them. But in a 60-70 mm telescope you can already see quite well both the disk of the planet and the rings, and the shadow on them from the planet. Of course, it’s unlikely to be able to see any details, although with a good opening of the rings, you can see the Cassini gap.

One of the amateur photographs of Saturn (150 mm reflector Synta BK P150750)

To see any details on the planet’s disk, you need a telescope with an aperture of at least 100 mm, and for serious observations - at least 200 mm. With such a telescope, you can see not only cloud belts and spots on the planet’s disk, but also details in the structure of the rings.

Of the satellites, the brightest are Titan and Rhea; they can be seen with 8x binoculars, although a 60-70 mm telescope is better. The remaining large satellites are not so bright - from 9.5 to 11 stars. V. and weaker. To observe them you will need a telescope with an aperture of 90 mm or more.

In addition to the telescope, it is advisable to have a set of color filters that will help better highlight different details. For example, dark yellow and orange filters help you see more detail in the planet's belts, green brings out more detail at the poles, and blue filters highlight the rings.

Planets of the Solar System

Known since ancient times, Saturn is the sixth planet of our solar system, famous for its rings. It is part of the four gas giant planets, such as Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune. With its size (diameter = 120,536 km), it is second only to Jupiter and is the second largest in the entire solar system. She was named in honor of the ancient Roman god Saturn, who among the Greeks was called Kronos (titan and father of Zeus himself).

The planet itself, along with its rings, can be seen from Earth, even with an ordinary small telescope. A day on Saturn is 10 hours 15 minutes, and the period of rotation around the Sun is almost 30 years!
Saturn is a unique planet because... its density is 0.69 g/cm³, which is less than the density of water 0.99 g/cm³. An interesting pattern follows from this: if it were possible to immerse the planet in a huge ocean or pool, then Saturn would be able to stay on the water and float in it.

Structure of Saturn

The structure of Saturn and Jupiter have many similarities, both in composition and in basic characteristics, but their appearance is quite noticeably different. Jupiter has bright tones, while Saturn has noticeably muted tones. Due to the smaller number of cloud-like formations in the lower layers, the stripes on Saturn are less noticeable. Another similarity with the fifth planet: Saturn emits more heat than it receives from the Sun.
The atmosphere of Saturn consists almost entirely of hydrogen (96% (H2), 3% helium (He). Less than 1% consists of methane, ammonia, ethane and other elements. Although the percentage of methane is insignificant in the atmosphere of Saturn, this does not prevent it from taking an active part in the absorption of solar radiation.
In the upper layers, a minimum temperature of –189 °C is recorded, but when immersed in the atmosphere, it increases significantly. At a depth of about 30 thousand km, hydrogen changes and becomes metallic. It is liquid metallic hydrogen that creates a magnetic field of enormous power. The core in the center of the planet turns out to be stone-iron.
When studying gaseous planets, scientists encountered a problem. After all, there is no clear boundary between the atmosphere and the surface. The problem was solved in the following way: they take as a certain zero height “zero” the point at which the temperature begins to count in the opposite direction. As a matter of fact, this is what happens on Earth.

Imagining Saturn, any person immediately conjures up its unique and amazing rings. Research carried out using AMS (automatic interplanetary stations) has shown that 4 gaseous giant planets have their own rings, but only Saturn has such good visibility and effectiveness. There are three main rings of Saturn, named rather simply: A, B, C. The fourth ring is much thinner and less noticeable. As it turned out, the rings of Saturn are not one solid body, but billions of small celestial bodies (pieces of ice), ranging in size from a speck of dust to several meters. They move at approximately the same speed (about 10 km/s) around the equatorial part of the planet, sometimes colliding with each other.

Photos from the AMS showed that all visible rings consist of thousands of small rings alternating with empty, unfilled space. For clarity, you can imagine an ordinary record from Soviet times.
The unique shape of the rings has always haunted both scientists and ordinary observers. They all tried to find out their structure and understand how and why they were formed. At different times, different hypotheses and assumptions were put forward, for example, that they were formed along with the planet. Currently, scientists are inclined to believe that the rings are of meteorite origin. This theory has also received observational confirmation, since the rings of Saturn are periodically renewed and are not anything stable.

Saturn's moons

Now Saturn has about 63 discovered satellites. The vast majority of satellites are turned to the planet with the same side and rotate synchronously.

Christiaan Huygens had the honor of discovering the second largest satellite, after Ganimer, in the entire solar system. It is larger in size than Mercury, and its diameter is 5155 km. The atmosphere of Titan is red-orange: 87% is nitrogen, 11% is argon, 2% is methane. Naturally, methane rains occur there, and on the surface there should be seas containing methane. However, the Voyager 1 apparatus, which examined Titan, was unable to discern its surface through such a dense atmosphere.
The moon Enceladus is the brightest solar body in the entire solar system. It reflects more than 99% of sunlight due to its almost white surface made of water ice. Its albedo (characteristic of a reflective surface) is more than 1.
Also among the more famous and most studied satellites, it is worth noting “Mimas”, “Tethea” and “Dione”.

Characteristics of Saturn

Mass: 5.69*1026 kg (95 times more than Earth)
Diameter at equator: 120,536 km (9.5 times larger than Earth)
Diameter at the pole: 108728 km
Axle tilt: 26.7°
Density: 0.69 g/cm³
Upper layer temperature: about –189 °C
Period of revolution around its own axis (length of a day): 10 hours 15 minutes
Distance from the Sun (average): 9.5 a. e. or 1430 million km
Orbital period around the Sun (year): 29.5 years
Orbital speed: 9.7 km/s
Orbital eccentricity: e = 0.055
Orbital inclination to the ecliptic: i = 2.5°
Gravity acceleration: 10.5 m/s²
Satellites: there are 63 pieces.

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun in the Solar System, one of the giant planets. A characteristic feature of Saturn, its decoration, is a system of rings consisting mainly of ice and dust. Has many satellites. Saturn was named by the ancient Romans in honor of the god of agriculture they especially revered.

a brief description of

Saturn is the second largest planet in the solar system after Jupiter, its mass is approximately 95 Earth masses. Saturn orbits the Sun at an average distance of about 1,430 million kilometers. The distance to Earth is 1280 million km. Its orbital period is 29.5 years, and a day on the planet lasts ten and a half hours. The composition of Saturn is practically no different from the solar one: the main elements are hydrogen and helium, as well as numerous impurities of ammonia, methane, ethane, acetylene and water. In terms of its internal composition, it is more reminiscent of Jupiter: a core of iron, water and nickel, covered with a thin shell of metallic hydrogen. An atmosphere of huge amounts of helium and hydrogen gas envelops the core in a thick layer. Since the planet consists mainly of gas, and there is no solid surface, Saturn is classified as a gas giant. For the same reason, its average density is incredibly low - 0.687 g/cm 3, which is less than the density of water. This makes it the least dense planet in the system. However, Saturn's compression ratio, on the contrary, is the highest. This means that its equatorial and polar radii are very different in size - 60,300 km and 54,400 km, respectively. This also implies a large difference in speeds for different parts of the atmosphere depending on latitude. The average speed of rotation around the axis is 9.87 km/s, and the orbital speed is 9.69 km/s.

The ring system of Saturn is a majestic sight. They consist of fragments of ice and stones, dust, remains of former satellites destroyed by its gravitational
field. They are located very high above the planet’s equator, approximately 6 – 120 thousand kilometers. However, the rings themselves are very thin: each of them is about a kilometer thick. The entire system is divided into four rings - three main and one thinner. The first three are usually denoted by Latin letters. The middle B ring, the brightest and widest, is separated from the A ring by a space called the Cassini gap, in which the thinnest and almost transparent rings are located. It is little known that in fact all four giant planets have rings, but all except Saturn have rings that are almost invisible.

There are currently 62 known satellites of Saturn. The largest of them are Titan, Enceladus, Mimas, Tethys, Dione, Iapetus and Rhea. Titan, the largest of the moons, is similar to Earth in many ways. It has an atmosphere divided into layers, as well as liquid on the surface, which is already a proven fact. The smaller objects are believed to be asteroid debris and may be less than a kilometer in size.

Education of the planet

There are two hypotheses about the origin of Saturn:

The first, the “contraction” hypothesis, states that the Sun and the planets were formed in the same way. At the initial stages of its development, the Solar System was a disk of gas and dust, in which separate areas gradually formed, denser and more massive than the surrounding matter. As a result, these “condensations” gave rise to the Sun and the planets known to us. This explains the similarity of the composition of Saturn and the Sun and its low density.

According to the second “accretion” hypothesis, the formation of Saturn took place in two stages. The first is the formation of dense bodies in the gas-dust disk, like rocky terrestrial planets. At this time, part of the gases in the region of Jupiter and Saturn scattered into outer space, which explains the slight difference in composition between these planets and the Sun. At the second stage, larger bodies attracted gas from the cloud surrounding them.

Internal structure

The inner region of Saturn is divided into three layers. In the center there is a small compared to the total volume, but a massive core of silicates, metals and ice. Its radius is approximately a quarter of the radius of the planet, and its mass is from 9 to 22 Earth masses. The temperature in the core is about 12,000 °C. The energy emitted by the gas giant is 2.5 times greater than the energy it receives from the Sun. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, the source of internal heat may be energy reserves accumulated during the gravitational compression of Saturn: during the formation of the planet from a protoplanetary disk, the gravitational energy of dust and gas turned into kinetic and then thermal. Secondly, part of the heat is created due to the Kelvin-Helmholtz mechanism: when the temperature drops, the pressure also drops, due to which the substance of the planet is compressed, and potential energy turns into heat. Thirdly, as a result of the condensation of helium drops and their subsequent fall through the hydrogen layer into the core, heat generation can also occur.

The core of Saturn is surrounded by a layer of hydrogen in a metallic state: it is in the liquid phase, but has the properties of a metal. Such hydrogen has very high electrical conductivity, therefore, the circulation of currents in it creates a powerful magnetic field. Here, at a depth of about 30 thousand km, the pressure reaches 3 million atmospheres. Above this level there is a layer of liquid molecular hydrogen, which gradually becomes a gas with height as it comes into contact with the atmosphere.

Atmosphere

Because gas planets do not have a solid surface, it is difficult to determine exactly where the atmosphere begins. For Saturn, this zero level is taken to be the height at which methane boils. The main components of the atmosphere are hydrogen (96.3%) and helium (3.25%). Spectroscopic studies also found water, methane, acetylene, ethane, phosphine, and ammonia in its composition. The pressure at the upper boundary of the atmosphere is about 0.5 atm. At this level, ammonia condenses and white clouds form. At the bottom, the clouds consist of ice crystals and water droplets.

Gases in the atmosphere are constantly moving, as a result of which they take the form of strips parallel to the diameter of the planet. The same bands exist on Jupiter, but on Saturn they are much fainter. Due to convection and rapid rotation, incredibly strong winds are formed, the most powerful in the solar system. The winds mainly blow in the direction of rotation, to the east. At the equator, air currents are the strongest; their speed can reach 1800 km/h. With distance from the equator, the winds weaken and westerly currents appear. The movement of gases occurs in all layers of the atmosphere.

Large cyclones can be very persistent and last for years. Once every 30 years, a “Great White Oval” appears on Saturn - a super-powerful hurricane, the size of which becomes larger each time. At the last observation in 2010, it made up a quarter of the planet's entire disk. Also, interplanetary stations discovered an unusual formation in the form of a regular hexagon at the north pole. Its form has been stable for 20 years after the first observation. Each side is 13,800 km - more than the diameter of the Earth. For astronomers, the reason for the formation of this particular cloud shape still remains a mystery.

Voyager and Cassini cameras have captured glowing areas on Saturn. They turned out to be auroras. They are located at a latitude of 70-80° and have the appearance of very bright rings of an oval (less often spiral) shape. It is believed that auroras on Saturn are formed as a result of the rearrangement of magnetic field lines. The resulting magnetic energy heats the surrounding areas of the atmosphere and accelerates charged particles to high speeds. In addition, lightning strikes are observed during severe storms.

Rings

When we talk about Saturn, the first thing that comes to mind is its amazing rings. Spacecraft observations have shown that all gas planets have rings, but only Saturn has them clearly visible and pronounced. The rings consist of tiny particles of ice, rocks, dust, and fragments of meteorites pulled in by the gravity of the system from outer space. They are more reflective than the disk of Saturn itself. The ring system consists of three main ones and a thinner fourth. Their diameter is approximately 250,000 km and their thickness is less than 1 km. The rings are named by letters of the Latin alphabet in order, from the periphery to the center. Rings A and B are separated by a 4,000 km wide space called the Cassini gap. Inside the outer ring A there is also a gap - the Encke dividing strip. Ring B is the brightest and widest, and Ring C is almost transparent. The fainter rings D, E, F, and G, closest to the outer part of Saturn's atmosphere, were discovered later. After images of the planet were taken by space stations, it became clear that in fact all large rings consist of many thinner rings.

There are several theories about the origin and formation of Saturn's rings. According to one of them, the rings were formed as a result of the planet’s “capture” of some of its satellites. They were destroyed, and their fragments were evenly distributed throughout the orbit. The second says that the rings formed along with the planet itself from an initial cloud of dust and gas. The particles that make up the rings cannot form larger objects like satellites due to their too small sizes, random movement and collisions with each other. It is worth noting that the system of Saturn’s rings is not considered absolutely stable: part of the matter is lost by being absorbed by the planet or scattered into the circumplanetary space, and part, on the contrary, is replaced by the interaction of comets and asteroids with the gravitational field.

In its structure and composition, Saturn, of all the gas giants, is most similar to Jupiter. A significant part of both planets is made up of an atmosphere of a mixture of hydrogen and helium, as well as some other impurities. This elemental composition is practically no different from the solar one. Beneath the thick layer of gases is a core of ice, iron and nickel, covered with a thin shell of metallic hydrogen. Saturn and Jupiter emit more heat than they receive from the Sun, since about half of the energy they emit is due to internal heat flows. Thus, Saturn could become a second star, but it did not have enough material to create enough gravitational force to promote nuclear fusion.

Modern space observations have shown that the clouds at the north pole of Saturn form a giant regular hexagon, the length of each side of which is 12.5 thousand km. The structure rotates with the planet and has not lost its shape for 20 years since its first discovery. A similar phenomenon has not been observed anywhere else in the solar system, and scientists have still not been able to explain it.

The Voyager spacecraft detected strong winds on Saturn. Air flow speeds reach 500 m/s. The winds blow mainly in an easterly direction, although as they move away from the equator their strength weakens and flows appear directed to the west. Some evidence suggests that the circulation of gases occurs not only in the upper layers of the atmosphere, but also at depth. Also, hurricanes of colossal power periodically appear in the atmosphere of Saturn. The largest of them, the “Great White Oval,” appears once every 30 years.

Currently, the Cassini interplanetary station, controlled from Earth, is in orbit around Saturn. It was launched in 1997 and reached the planet in 2004. Its goal is to study the rings, atmosphere and magnetic field of Saturn and its moons. Thanks to Cassini, many high-quality images were obtained, auroras were discovered, the above-mentioned hexagon, mountains and islands on Titan, traces of water on Enceladus, previously unknown rings that could not be seen using ground-based instruments.

The rings of Saturn in the form of processes on the sides can be seen even with small binoculars with a lens diameter of 15 mm or more. In a telescope with a diameter of 60-70 mm, a small disk of the planet without details, surrounded by rings, is already visible. In larger instruments (100-150 mm), Saturn's cloud belts, pole caps, ring shadows and some other details are visible. In telescopes larger than 200 mm, you can clearly see dark and light spots on the surface, belts, zones, and details of the structure of the rings.

Saturn– a planet of the Solar System with rings: size, mass, orbit, composition, surface, satellites, atmosphere, temperature, research by devices with photos.

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and perhaps the most beautiful object in the solar system.

This is the most distant planet from the star that can be found from Earth without using a telescope or binoculars. So they have known about its existence for a long time. Here is one of the four gas giants, located 6th in order from the Sun. You will be curious to know what kind of planet Saturn is, but first check out these interesting facts about the planet Saturn.

Interesting facts about the planet Saturn

Can be found without tools

Saturn is the 5th brightest planet in the solar system, so it can be seen with binoculars or a telescope.

Ancient people saw it

The Babylonians and residents of the Far East also watched him. Named after the Roman titan (analogous to the Greek Kronos).

Flattest planet

The polar diameter covers 90% of the equatorial diameter, which is based on the low density and rapid rotation. The planet rotates once every 10 hours and 34 minutes.

A year lasts 29.4 years

Because of its slowness, the ancient Assyrians nicknamed the planet “Lubadshagush” - “the oldest of the oldest.”

There are streaks in the upper atmosphere

The composition of the upper layers of the atmosphere is represented by ammonia ice. Beneath them are clouds of water, and then come cold mixtures of hydrogen and sulfur.

Oval storms present

The area above the north pole took on a hexagonal shape (hexagon). Researchers think it could be a wave pattern in the cloud tops. There is also a vortex over the south pole that resembles a hurricane.

The planet is composed mainly of hydrogen

The planet is divided into layers that penetrate Saturn more densely. At great depths, hydrogen becomes metallic. The basis is a hot interior.

Endowed with the most beautiful ring system

Saturn's rings are made of ice fragments and a small admixture of carbonaceous dust. They stretch for 120,700 km, but are incredibly thin - 20 m.

The lunar family includes 62 satellites

Saturn's moons are icy worlds. The largest are Titan and Rhea. Enceladus may have a subsurface ocean.

Titan has a complex nitrogen atmosphere

Consists of ice and stone. The frozen surface layer is endowed with lakes of liquid methane and landscapes covered with frozen nitrogen. May have life.

Sent 4 missions

These are Pioneer 11, Voyager 1 and 2 and Cassini-Huygens.

Size, mass and orbit of the planet Saturn

The average radius of Saturn is 58,232 km (equatorial - 60,268 km, polar - 54,364 km), which is 9.13 times larger than Earth's. With a mass of 5.6846 × 10 26 kg and a surface area of 4.27 × 10 10 km 2, its volume reaches 8.2713 × 10 14 km 3.

Polar compression	0.097 96 ± 0.000 18
Equatorial	60,268 ± 4 km
Polar radius	54 36 ± 10 km
Surface area	4.27 10 10 km²
Volume	8.27 10 14 km³
Weight	5.68 10 26 kg 95 earthly
Average density	0.687 g/cm³
Acceleration free falls at the equator	10.44 m/s²
Second escape velocity	35.5 km/s
Equatorial speed rotation	9.87 km/s
Rotation period	10h 34min 13s ± 2s
Axis tilt	26.73°
North pole declination	83.537°
Albedo	0.342 (Bond)
Apparent magnitude	from +1.47 to −0.24
Absolute stellar magnitude	0,3
Angular diameter	9%

The distance from the Sun to the planet Saturn is 1.4 billion km. In this case, the maximum distance reaches 1,513,783 km, and the minimum – 1,353,600 km.

The average orbital speed reaches 9.69 km/s, and Saturn spends 10,759 days to pass around the star. It turns out that one year on Saturn lasts 29.5 Earth years. But here the situation with Jupiter is repeated, where the rotation of the regions occurs at different speeds. Saturn's shape resembles an oblate spheroid.

Composition and surface of the planet Saturn

You already know what planet Saturn is. It is a gas giant represented by hydrogen and gas. The average density of 0.687 g/cm 3 is surprising. That is, if you place Saturn in a huge body of water, the planet will remain afloat. It has no surface, but has a dense core. The fact is that heating, density and pressure increase as you approach the core. The structure is explained in detail in the bottom photo of Saturn.

Scientists believe that Saturn is similar in structure to Jupiter: a rocky core around which hydrogen and helium are concentrated with a small admixture of volatile substances. The composition of the core may resemble that of the Earth, but with increased density due to the presence of metallic hydrogen.

Inside the planet, the temperature rises to 11,700°C, and the amount of energy emitted is 2.5 times greater than what it receives from the Sun. In a sense, this is due to the slow gravitational Kelvin-Helmholtz contraction. Or is it all about helium droplets rising from the depths into the hydrogen layer. This releases heat and removes helium from the outer layers.

Calculations from 2004 say that the core should be 9-22 times larger than the earth's mass, and its diameter should be 25,000 km. It is surrounded by a dense layer of liquid metallic hydrogen, followed by helium-rich molecular hydrogen. The outermost layer extends for 1000 km and is represented by gas.

Satellites of the planet Saturn

Saturn boasts 62 satellites, of which only 53 have official names. Among them, 34 have a diameter of less than 10 km, and 14 have a diameter between 10 and 50 km. But some inner satellites extend 250-5000 km.

Most of the satellites were named after the titans from the myths of Ancient Greece. The innermost moons are endowed with small orbital inclinations. But irregular satellites in the most isolated areas are located millions of km away and can make their rounds in several years.

The internal ones include Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys and Dione. They are represented by water ice and may have a rocky core, an icy mantle and crust. The smallest is Mimas with a diameter of 396 km and a mass of 0.4 x 10 20 kg. It is shaped like an egg and is 185.539 km away from the planet, which is why the orbital passage takes 0.9 days.

Enceladus, with measurements of 504 km and 1.1 x 10 20 kg, has a spherical speed. It takes 1.4 days to go around the planet. It is one of the smallest spherical moons, but is endogenously and geologically active. This caused the appearance of parallel faults in the southern polar latitudes.

Large geysers were spotted in the south polar region. These jets serve as a source of replenishment for the E ring. They are important because they may hint at the presence of life on Enceladus, since the water comes from an underground ocean. The albedo is 140%, making it one of the brightest objects in the system. Below you can admire the photo of Saturn's moons.

With a diameter of 1066 km, Tethys is the second largest among Saturn's moons. Most of the surface is represented by craters and hills, as well as a small amount of plains. The Odysseus crater, which stretches for 400 km, stands out. There is also a canyon system that deepens 3-5 km, stretches 2000 km, and is 100 km wide.

The largest inner moon is Dione - 1112 km and 11 x 10 20 kg. Its surface is not only ancient, but also heavily damaged from impacts. Some craters reach a diameter of 250 km. There is also evidence of past geological activity.

The outer satellites are located outside the E-ring and are represented by water ice and rock. This is Rhea with a diameter of 1527 km and a mass of 23 x 10 20 kg. It is distant from Saturn by 527.108 km, and takes 4.5 days for its orbital passage. The surface is also dotted with craters and several large faults are visible on the rear hemisphere. There are two large impact basins with a diameter of 400-500 km.

Titan extends over 5150 km, and its mass is 1,350 x 10 20 kg (96% of the orbital mass), which is why it is considered the largest satellite of Saturn. It is the only large moon with its own atmospheric layer. It is cold, dense and holds nitrogen and methane. There are small amounts of hydrocarbons and methane ice crystals.

The surface is difficult to see due to the dense atmospheric haze. Only a few crater formations, cryo-volcanoes and longitudinal dunes are visible. This is the only body in the system with methane-ethane lakes. Titan is 1,221,870 km away and is believed to have an underground ocean. It takes 16 days to go around the planet.

Hyperion lives near Titan. With a diameter of 270 km, it is inferior in size and mass to Mimas. It is an ovoid brown object that, due to its crater surface (2-10 km in diameter), resembles a sponge. No predictable rotation.

Iapetus extends over 1470 km and has a mass of 1.8 x 10 20 kg. It is the most distant moon, located at 3,560,820 km, which is why it takes 79 days to pass. It has an interesting composition because one side is dark and the other is lighter. Because of this, they are called yin and yang.

The Inuit include 5 moons named after Inuit mythology: Ijirak, Kiviok, Paliak, Siarnak and Tarkek. Their prograde orbits range from 11.1-17.9 million km, and their diameter ranges from 7-40 km. Orbital inclinations – 45-50°.

Gallic family - outer satellites: Albiorix, Befin, Erripo and Tarvos. Their orbits are 16-19 million km, inclination is from 35° to -40°, diameter is 6-32 km, and eccentricity is 0.53.

There is a Scandinavian group - 29 retrograde moons. Their diameter is 6-18 km, distance is 12-24 million km, inclination is 136-175°, and eccentricity is 0.13-0.77. They are sometimes called the Thebes family, after their largest moon, which extends 240 km. Next comes Ymir - 18 km.

Between the inner and outer moons lives a group of Alkoinids: Methon, Antha and Pallene. These are the smallest satellites of Saturn. Some large moons have their own small ones. So Tethys has Telesto and Calypso, and Dion has Helen and Polydeuces.

Atmosphere and temperature of the planet Saturn

The outer layer of Saturn's atmosphere consists of 96.3% molecular hydrogen and 3.25% helium. There are also heavier elements, but there is little information about their proportions. Propane, ammonia, methane, acetylene, ethane and phosphine were found in small quantities. The upper cloud cover is represented by ammonia crystals, and the lower cloud cover is represented by ammonium hydrosulfide or water. UV rays lead to metalin photolysis, which causes chemical reactions of the hydrocarbon.

The atmosphere appears striped, but the lines weaken and widen toward the equator. There is a division into upper and lower layers, differing in composition based on pressure and depth. The upper ones are represented by ammonia ice, where the pressure is 0.5-2 bar and the temperature is 100-160 K.

At a level with a pressure of 2.5 bar, a line of ice clouds begins, which stretches to 9.5 bar, and the heating is 185-270 K. Bands of ammonium hydrosulfide mix here at a pressure of 3-6 bar and a temperature of 290-235 K. The lower layer is represented by ammonia in an aqueous solution with indicators of 10-20 bar and 270-330 K.

Sometimes long-period ovals form in the atmosphere. The most famous is the Great White Spot. It is created every Saturnian year around the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere.

The spots can extend several thousand kilometers in width and were observed in 1876, 1903, 1933, 1960 and 1990. Since 2010, the “northern electrostatic disturbance” observed by Cassini has been monitored. If these clouds adhere to periodicity, then the next time we will note their appearance is in 2020.

In terms of wind speed, the planet ranks second after Neptune. Voyager recorded a rate of 500 m/s. A hexagonal wave is visible at the north pole, and a massive jet stream is visible at the south pole.

The hexagon was first seen in Voyager photographs. Its sides extend over 13,800 km (more than the diameter of the Earth), and the structure rotates in 10 hours, 39 minutes and 24 seconds. The vortex at the south pole was observed using the Hubble telescope. There is a wind speed of 550 km/h here, and the storm is similar in size to our planet.

Rings of the planet Saturn

It is believed that these are old rings and could have formed along with the planet. There are two theories. One says that the rings were previously a satellite that was destroyed due to its close approach to the planet. Or the rings were never part of the satellite, but are a remnant of the nebular material from which Saturn itself emerged.

They are divided into 7 rings, between which there is a gap. A and B are the densest and span 14,600 and 25,300 km in diameter. They extend 92,000-117,580 km (B) and 122,170-136,775 km (A) from the center. The Cassini Division covers 4,700 km.

C is separated from B by 64 km. It is 17,500 km wide and 74,658-92,000 km away from the planet. Together with A and B, it contains the main rings with larger particles. Next come the dust rings, because they contain small particles.

D occupies 7500 km and extends inward for 66900-75510 km. At the other end are G (9000 km and a distance of 166000-175000 km) and E (300000 km and a distance of 166000-480000 km). F is located on the outer edge of A and is more difficult to classify. It's mostly dust. It covers 30-500 km in width and extends 140-180 km from the center.

History of the study of the planet Saturn

Saturn can be found without the use of telescopes, which is why ancient people saw it. Mentions are found in legends and mythology. The earliest records belong to Babylon, where the planet was registered in relation to the zodiac sign.

The ancient Greeks called this giant Kronos, who was the god of agriculture and acted as the youngest of the titans. Ptolemy was able to calculate the orbital passage of Saturn when the planet was in opposition. In Rome they used the Greek tradition and gave it its current name.

In ancient Hebrew the planet was called Shabbatai, and in the Ottoman Empire it was called Zuhal. Hindus have Shani, who judges everyone, assessing good and bad deeds. The Chinese and Japanese called it the earth's star, considering it one of the elements.

But the planet was not observed until 1610, when Galileo looked at it through his telescope and rings were discovered. But the scientist thought that these were two satellites. Only Christiaan Huygens corrected the mistake. He also found Titan, and Giovanni Cassini found Iapetus, Rhea, Tethys and Dione.

The next important step was taken by William Herschel in 1789, when he found Mimas and Enceladus. And in 1848 Hyperion appears.

Drawing of Saturn by Robert Hooke (1666)

Phoebus was found in 1899 by William Pickering, who guessed that the satellite had an irregular orbit and rotated synchronously with the planet. In the 20th century, it became clear that Titan has a dense atmosphere, something that had not been seen before. The planet Saturn is an interesting object to study. On our website you can study his photos, watch a video about the planet and learn many more interesting facts. Below is a map of Saturn.