from New Moons of Saturn

According to the passage 'from New Moons of Saturn,' who led the team that discovered 63 new natural satellites orbiting Saturn?

• Astronomer Edward Ashton

• Astronomer Maria Mitchell

• Astronomer Carl Sagan

• Astronomer Jocelyn Bell Burnell

Astronomers expected to find even more moons around Saturn, according to Ashton, because:

• Saturn's rings are believed to contain many hidden moons.

• Saturn is the largest planet in the solar system.

• Saturn's atmosphere creates new moons regularly.

• Saturn's moons are easier to detect than other planets' moons.

What was the name of the first known moon of Saturn discovered in 1655?

• Titan

• Europa

• Ganymede

• Phobos

What technique did Ashton and his team use to spot the elusive orbiters around Saturn?

• Shift and stack

• Spectral analysis

• Direct imaging

• Radio interferometry

True or False: The Voyager and Cassini satellites were able to spot the new moons around Saturn.

• True

• False

What made the missing moons around Saturn difficult to spot, according to Ashton?

• They were hidden by Saturn's rings.

• They were too small to detect with telescopes.

• They moved too quickly to be tracked.

• They were confused with asteroids.

What shape are the newly discovered moons of Saturn described as?

• Perfectly round

• Lumpy potatoes

• Flat disks

• Spheres

Read the passage below and answer the question: A Different Kind of Moon The moons these images captured are uncannily small. They are miniature worlds, measuring just a few miles across. They are shaped like lumpy potatoes, as they lack sufficient mass for their gravity to make them round. They orbit very far from Saturn itself, from six to 18 million miles (10 to 29 million km) out. On average, they are about 50 times farther away than our moon is positioned from Earth. Their orbits are unusual in other ways, too. They’re extremely elongated and slanted compared to the planet’s orbit. Different moons of Saturn revolve in different directions. And some moons follow one another in virtually the same orbit. How far from Saturn do the newly discovered moons orbit?

• 1 to 5 million miles

• 6 to 18 million miles

• 20 to 40 million miles

• 50 to 100 million miles

What are Saturn's rings made from?

• Millions of shimmering ice crystals

• Molten lava

• Solid rock formations

• Clouds of gas

Why do some scientists compare Saturn to a 'mini solar system'?

• Because Saturn is orbited by so many moons.

• Because Saturn is the largest planet in the solar system.

• Because Saturn has rings made of ice and rock.

• Because Saturn is closest to the Sun.