Planet Saturn

Saturn

Saturn - "Ringed Planet"

• Second largest planet

• Atmosphere is composed of hydrogen and helium

• The North Pole has strange hexagon-shaped clouds

• Has the most complex set of rings.

Saturn continued...

• From Earth, it appears to have 7 main rings but actually, there is between 500-1000

• Saturn's largest moon, Titan, is the larger than Mercury and the only moon with a thick atmosphere

• Titan's atmosphere is composed mostly of nitrogen and methane

The Planet Saturn

• Saturn – the 2nd largest planet and the 6th planet

from the sun. Some say Saturn is the Jewel of the
solar system.
– Lowest density – would float
– Much like Jupiter

• Made up of mostly Hydrogen and Helium.
• Bands, clouds, storms, magnetic field strength is high.

• Saturn's rings span up to 175,000 miles.

The Planet Saturn

• There are 7 major rings around Saturn. (Labeled

A-G)

• Saturn spins very fast as one day on Saturn is 10.7

Earth hours.

• There have been 5 missions to Saturn.
• The current mission is the spacecraft Cassini.
• Saturn’s volume is 755 times greater than that of

Earth.

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Moons of Saturn

• Saturn’s Moons – 53 at most recent count.

~with 9 Provisional.
– Titan – larger than the Planet Mercury, is the

2nd largest moon in solar system.

• Has a thick atmosphere.
• Appears to have feature caused by flowing

liquids like streams.

• Could have some water in the atmosphere.
• Possibly the most earth-like moon in the solar

system.

Titan

• Titan's atmosphere is mostly nitrogen (about 95

percent) and methane (about 5 percent), with
small amounts of other carbon-rich compounds.

• High in the atmosphere, methane and nitrogen

molecules are split apart by the sun's ultraviolet
light and high-energy particles accelerated by
Saturn's magnetic field; the products of this
splitting recombine to form a variety of organic
molecules.

Moons of Saturn

• These organic molecules contain carbon and

hydrogen, and often include nitrogen, oxygen
and other elements important to life on Earth.