Planet Saturn brief description. Planet Saturn is another testing ground for saving humanity
Planet Saturn
Saturn was the most distant of the five planets known to ancient peoples.
In 1610, Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei was the first to view Saturn through a telescope. To his surprise, he saw several objects on both sides of the planet. He made drawings of Saturn as separate spheres, believing that Saturn had a triple body.
In 1659, Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens, using a telescope more powerful than Galileo, proposed that Saturn was surrounded by a thin, flat ring. In 1675, Italian-born astronomer Jean-Dominique Cassini discovered a gap between what are now called the A and B rings.
Like , Saturn consists mainly of hydrogen and helium. Its volume is 755 times greater than that of .
Winds in the upper atmosphere blow at speeds of 500 m/sec in the equatorial region. (The strongest hurricane-force winds on Earth top out at 110 m/sec.)
These super-fast, high-temperature winds inside the planet cause the yellow and gold streaks visible in the atmosphere.
In the early 1980s, the Voyager 1 spacecraft and Voyager 2 spacecraft showed that Saturn's rings are composed primarily of ice and dust.
Saturn's ring system extends hundreds of thousands of kilometers from the planet, and the vertical width of the ring is typically approximately 10 m.
During the Saturn equinox in fall 2009, when sunlight illuminated the ring edge, the Cassini spacecraft captured vertical formations in some of the rings; the particles formed clusters about 3 km in size.
Saturn's largest moon: Titan, which is slightly larger than the planet Mercury.
Titan is the second largest moon in the solar system; it is surpassed by Jupiter's moon Ganymede.
Titan is covered in a nitrogen-rich atmosphere that could be similar to that previously found on Earth.
Further exploration of this moon promises to reveal much about planetary formation and perhaps the early years of Earth's existence.
Saturn also has many smaller, icy moons. Each satellite of Saturn is unique.
Although Saturn's magnetic field is not as strong as Jupiter's, it is nevertheless more than 500 times stronger than Earth's.
Saturn's satellites are located nearby, or better yet, in the space of its own magnetosphere.
The Cassini spacecraft, orbiting Saturn since 2004, continues to explore the planet and its moons, rings and magnetosphere. As of July 2009, Cassini has transmitted more than 200,000 images.
Saturn's moons
Saturn, the sixth planet from the Sun, is home to a vast array of intriguing and unique worlds.
Christiaan Huygens discovered the first known moon of Saturn. He did it in 1655 - it was Titan.
Giovanni Domenico Cassini made the following four discoveries of moons: Iapetus (1671), Rhea (1672), Dione (1684), and Tethys.
At the moment, a total of 53 natural satellites have been discovered in the orbit of Saturn. Each of Saturn's moons has a unique history. Two satellites create gaps in the main rings. Some of them, such as Prometheus and Pandora, are located inside the ring of Saturn.
Janus and Epimetheus sometimes pass so close to each other that they change their orbital trajectory when they interact.
Here are examples of some of Saturn's moons:
Titan is so large that it influences the orbits of other moons. It is 5150 km across and is the second largest moon in the solar system.
Titan has an atmosphere made mostly of nitrogen.
Titan's atmosphere is 95% nitrogen with traces of methane. Earth's atmosphere extends approximately 60 km from the surface, Titan's atmosphere extends almost 600 km (ten times more than Earth's atmosphere) in space.
The moon Iapetus has one side as bright as snow and one side as black velvet.
Phoebe orbits the planet in the opposite direction to the rotation of all of Saturn's large moons.
Mimas has a huge crater on one side, the result of an impact that almost split the moon into two parts.
Parameters of the planet Saturn:
Distance from the Sun:
Average: 1,426,666,422 km
For comparison: 9.537 Earth's distance from the Sun
Perihelion (minimum): 1,349,823,615 km
For comparison: 9.176 Earth's distance from the Sun
Apohelium (maximum): 1,503,509,229 km
For comparison: 9.885 Earth's distance from the Sun
Circulation period (length of year):
29.447498 Earth years
10,755.70 Earth days
Orbital circumference:
Metric: 8957504604 km
For comparison: 9,530 Earth circumference
Average orbital speed:
34701 km/h
For comparison: 0.324 Earth orbital speed
Average radius of the planet:
58232 km
For comparison: 9.1402 Earth radii
Equatorial circumference:
365,882.4 km
For comparison: 9.1402 Earth circumferences
Volume
827 129 915 150 897 km 3
For comparison: 763,594 Earth volumes
Weight:
568 319 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 kg
For comparison: 95,161 Earth masses
Density:
0.687 g/cm3
For comparison: 0.125 Earth density
Square:
42,612,133,285 km2
For comparison: 83,543 Earth's area
Surface gravity:
10.4 m/s 2
English: 34.3 m/s 2
For comparison, if you weigh 100 kg on Earth, you would weigh about 107 kg on Saturn (at the equator).
Second escape velocity:
35.5 km/sec
Rotation period (length of day):
0.444 Earth days
10,656 hours
For comparison: 0.445 times the length of an Earth day
Average temperature:
-178°C
Composition of Saturn's atmosphere:
Hydrogen, helium
Scientific Note: H 2 , He
For comparison, the Earth's atmosphere consists mainly of N 2 and O 2.
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System after Jupiter. Saturn, as well as Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune, are classified as gas giants. Saturn is named after the Roman god of agriculture.
Saturn is composed primarily of hydrogen, with some helium and traces of water, methane, ammonia and heavy elements. The inner region is a small core of iron, nickel and ice, covered with a thin layer of metallic hydrogen and a gaseous outer layer. The planet's outer atmosphere appears calm and uniform from space, although sometimes long-lasting formations appear on it. Wind speeds on Saturn can reach 1,800 km/h in places, which is significantly higher than on Jupiter. Saturn has a planetary magnetic field that is intermediate in strength between the Earth's magnetic field and the powerful field of Jupiter. Saturn's magnetic field extends 1,000,000 kilometers in the direction of the Sun. The shock wave was detected by Voyager 1 at a distance of 26.2 Saturn radii from the planet itself, the magnetopause is located at a distance of 22.9 radii.
Saturn has a prominent ring system made up primarily of ice particles and smaller amounts of heavy elements and dust. There are 62 currently known satellites orbiting the planet. Titan is the largest of them, as well as the second largest satellite in the Solar System (after the satellite of Jupiter, Ganymede), which is larger than Mercury and has the only dense atmosphere among the satellites of the Solar System.
Currently in Saturn's orbit is the Cassini automatic interplanetary station, launched in 1997 and reaching the Saturn system in 2004, whose tasks include studying the structure of the rings, as well as the dynamics of the atmosphere and magnetosphere of Saturn.
Saturn among the planets of the solar system
Saturn is a type of gas planet: it consists mainly of gases and does not have a solid surface. The equatorial radius of the planet is 60,300 km, the polar radius is 54,400 km; Of all the planets in the solar system, Saturn has the greatest compression. The planet's mass is 95 times the mass of Earth, but Saturn's average density is only 0.69 g/cm2, making it the only planet in the solar system whose average density is less than that of water. Therefore, although the masses of Jupiter and Saturn differ by more than 3 times, their equatorial diameter differs by only 19%. The density of the remaining gas giants is much higher (1.27-1.64 g/cm2). The acceleration of gravity at the equator is 10.44 m/s2, which is comparable to the values of Earth and Neptune, but much less than that of Jupiter.
The average distance between Saturn and the Sun is 1430 million km (9.58 AU). Moving at an average speed of 9.69 km/s, Saturn orbits the Sun every 10,759 days (approximately 29.5 years). The distance from Saturn to Earth varies from 1195 (8.0 AU) to 1660 (11.1 AU) million km, the average distance during their opposition is about 1280 million km. Saturn and Jupiter are in an almost exact 2:5 resonance. Since the eccentricity of Saturn’s orbit is 0.056, the difference in distance to the Sun at perihelion and aphelion is 162 million km.
The characteristic objects of Saturn's atmosphere visible during observations rotate at different speeds depending on latitude. As with Jupiter, there are several groups of such objects. The so-called “Zone 1” has a rotation period of 10 hours 14 minutes 00 seconds (that is, the speed is 844.3°/day). It extends from the northern edge of the southern equatorial belt to the southern edge of the northern equatorial belt. At all other latitudes of Saturn, making up "Zone 2", the rotation period was initially estimated at 10 hours 39 minutes 24 seconds (speed 810.76°/day). The data was subsequently revised: a new estimate was given - 10 hours, 34 minutes and 13 seconds. “Zone 3,” the presence of which is assumed based on observations of the radio emission of the planet during the flight of Voyager 1, has a rotation period of 10 hours 39 minutes 22.5 s (speed 810.8°/day).
The duration of Saturn's revolution around its axis is taken to be 10 hours, 34 minutes and 13 seconds. The exact value of the period of rotation of the internal parts of the planet remains difficult to measure. When Cassini reached Saturn in 2004, it was discovered that, based on observations of radio emission, the rotation time of the internal parts was noticeably longer than the rotation period in Zone 1 and Zone 2, approximately 10 hours 45 minutes 45 seconds (±36 seconds). .
In March 2007, it was discovered that the rotation of Saturn's radio emission pattern is generated by convection currents in the plasma disk, which depend not only on the rotation of the planet, but also on other factors. It was also reported that the fluctuation in the rotation period of the radiation pattern is associated with the activity of a geyser on Saturn's moon Enceladus. Charged particles of water vapor in the planet's orbit lead to a distortion of the magnetic field and, as a consequence, the radio emission pattern. The discovered picture gave rise to the opinion that today there is no correct method for determining the rotation speed of the planet’s core.
Origin
The origin of Saturn (as well as Jupiter) is explained by two main hypotheses. According to the “contraction” hypothesis, the composition of Saturn, similar to the Sun (large proportion of hydrogen), and, as a consequence, low density can be explained by the fact that during the formation of planets in the early stages of the development of the Solar system, massive “condensations” formed in the gas and dust disk, which gave the beginning of the planets, that is, the Sun and the planets were formed in a similar way. However, this hypothesis cannot explain the differences in composition between Saturn and the Sun.
The "accretion" hypothesis states that the formation of Saturn occurred in two stages. First, for 200 million years, the process of formation of solid dense bodies, like the terrestrial planets, took place. During this stage, some of the gas dissipated from the region of Jupiter and Saturn, which then influenced the difference in the chemical composition of Saturn and the Sun. Then the second stage began, when the largest bodies reached twice the mass of the Earth. The process of gas accretion onto these bodies from the primary protoplanetary cloud lasted for several hundred thousand years. At the second stage, the temperature of the outer layers of Saturn reached 2000 °C.
Atmosphere and structure
Aurora over Saturn's north pole. The auroras are colored blue, and the clouds below are colored red. A previously discovered hexagonal cloud is visible directly below the auroras.
Saturn's upper atmosphere is composed of 96.3% hydrogen (by volume) and 3.25% helium (compared to 10% in Jupiter's atmosphere). There are impurities of methane, ammonia, phosphine, ethane and some other gases. Ammonia clouds in the upper atmosphere are more powerful than Jovian clouds. Clouds in the lower atmosphere are composed of ammonium hydrosulfide (NH4SH) or water.
According to Voyagers, strong winds blow on Saturn; the devices recorded air speeds of 500 m/s. Winds blow mainly in the easterly direction (in the direction of axial rotation). Their strength weakens with distance from the equator; As we move away from the equator, westerly atmospheric currents also appear. A number of data indicate that atmospheric circulation occurs not only in the layer of upper clouds, but also at a depth of at least 2 thousand km. In addition, Voyager 2 measurements showed that winds in the southern and northern hemispheres are symmetrical relative to the equator. There is an assumption that the symmetrical flows are somehow connected under the layer of visible atmosphere.
In the atmosphere of Saturn, stable formations sometimes appear that are super-powerful hurricanes. Similar objects are observed on other gas planets of the Solar System (see the Great Red Spot on Jupiter, the Great Dark Spot on Neptune). A giant "Great White Oval" appears on Saturn about once every 30 years, last seen in 1990 (smaller hurricanes form more often).
On November 12, 2008, Cassini cameras captured images of Saturn's north pole in the infrared. On them, researchers discovered auroras, the likes of which have never been observed before in the Solar System. These auroras were also observed in the ultraviolet and visible ranges. Auroras are bright, continuous, oval-shaped rings surrounding the planet's pole. The rings are located at a latitude, usually 70-80°. The southern rings are located at an average latitude of 75 ± 1°, and the northern ones are closer to the pole by about 1.5°, which is due to the fact that the magnetic field is somewhat stronger in the northern hemisphere. Sometimes the rings become spiral-shaped instead of oval.
Unlike Jupiter, Saturn's auroras are not associated with uneven rotation of the plasma layer in the outer parts of the planet's magnetosphere. Presumably, they arise due to magnetic reconnection under the influence of the solar wind. The shape and appearance of Saturn's auroras vary greatly over time. Their location and brightness are strongly related to the pressure of the solar wind: the higher it is, the brighter the auroras and closer to the pole. The average power of the aurora is 50 GW in the range of 80-170 nm (ultraviolet) and 150-300 GW in the range of 3-4 microns (infrared).
On December 28, 2010, Cassini photographed a storm that resembled cigarette smoke. Another particularly powerful storm was recorded on May 20, 2011.
Hexagonal formation at the North Pole
Hexagonal atmospheric formation at Saturn's north pole
The clouds at Saturn's north pole form a hexagon - a giant hexagon. First discovered during Voyager's flybys of Saturn in the 1980s, a similar phenomenon has never been observed anywhere else in the solar system. The hexagon is located at latitude 78°, and each side is approximately 13,800 km, that is, more than the diameter of the Earth. Its rotation period is 10 hours 39 minutes. If Saturn's south pole with its spinning hurricane doesn't seem strange, then the north pole may be considered much more unusual. This period coincides with the period of change in the intensity of radio emission, which in turn is taken to be equal to the period of rotation of the interior of Saturn.
The strange cloud structure is shown in an infrared image taken by the Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn in October 2006. The images show that the hexagon remained stable for 20 years after Voyager's flight. Movies showing Saturn's north pole show the clouds maintaining a hexagonal structure as they rotate. Individual clouds on Earth may have a hexagonal shape, but unlike them, the cloud system on Saturn has six well-defined sides of almost equal length. Four Earths can fit inside this hexagon. It is assumed that there is significant cloud variability in the hexagon area. Areas where there is virtually no cloud cover have altitudes of up to 75 km.
There is no complete explanation for this phenomenon yet, but scientists were able to conduct an experiment that fairly accurately simulated this atmospheric structure. The researchers placed a 30-liter bottle of water on a rotating machine, with small rings inside that rotated faster than the container. The higher the speed of the ring, the more the shape of the vortex, which was formed during the combined rotation of the installation elements, differed from circular. The experiment also produced a hexagon-shaped vortex.
Internal structure
Internal structure of Saturn
Deep in Saturn's atmosphere, pressure and temperature increase, and hydrogen turns into a liquid state, but this transition is gradual. At a depth of about 30 thousand km, hydrogen becomes metallic (and the pressure reaches about 3 million atmospheres). The circulation of electric currents in metallic hydrogen creates a magnetic field (much less powerful than that of Jupiter). At the center of the planet there is a massive core of heavy materials - stone, iron and, presumably, ice. Its mass ranges from approximately 9 to 22 Earth masses. The temperature of the core reaches 11,700 °C, and the energy it radiates into space is 2.5 times more than the energy that Saturn receives from the Sun. A significant part of this energy is generated due to the Kelvin-Heimholtz mechanism, which consists in the fact that when the temperature of the planet drops, the pressure in it also drops. As a result, it contracts, and the potential energy of its substance turns into heat. At the same time, however, it was shown that this mechanism cannot be the only source of energy for the planet. It is assumed that an additional part of the heat is created due to condensation and subsequent fall of helium drops through a layer of hydrogen (less dense than drops) deep into the core. The result is the conversion of the potential energy of these drops into thermal energy. The core region is estimated to have a diameter of approximately 25,000 km.
A magnetic field
Structure of Saturn's magnetosphere
Saturn's magnetosphere was discovered by the Pioneer 11 spacecraft in 1979. In size it is second only to the magnetosphere of Jupiter. The magnetopause, the boundary between Saturn's magnetosphere and the solar wind, is located at a distance of about 20 Saturn radii from its center, and the magnetotail extends for hundreds of radii. Saturn's magnetosphere is filled with plasma produced by the planet and its moons. Among the satellites, the largest role is played by Enceladus, whose geysers emit about 300-600 kg of water vapor every second, part of which is ionized by Saturn’s magnetic field.
The interaction between Saturn's magnetosphere and the solar wind generates bright aurora ovals around the planet's poles, visible in visible, ultraviolet and infrared light. The magnetic field of Saturn, like Jupiter, is created due to the dynamo effect during the circulation of metallic hydrogen in the outer core. The magnetic field is almost dipole, just like the Earth's, with north and south magnetic poles. The north magnetic pole is located in the northern hemisphere, and the south pole is in the southern hemisphere, unlike the Earth, where the location of the geographic poles is opposite to the location of the magnetic ones. The magnitude of the magnetic field at Saturn's equator is 21 μT (0.21 G), which corresponds to a dipole magnetic moment of approximately 4.6? 10 18 T m3. Saturn's magnetic dipole is rigidly connected to its rotation axis, so the magnetic field is very asymmetrical. The dipole is slightly shifted along Saturn's rotation axis towards the north pole.
Saturn's internal magnetic field deflects the solar wind away from the planet's surface, preventing it from interacting with the atmosphere, and creates a region called the magnetosphere, filled with a very different kind of plasma than that of the solar wind. The magnetosphere of Saturn is the second largest magnetosphere in the Solar System, the largest is the magnetosphere of Jupiter. As in the Earth's magnetosphere, the boundary between the solar wind and the magnetosphere is called the magnetopause. The distance from the magnetopause to the center of the planet (along the Sun - Saturn straight line) varies from 16 to 27 Rs (Rs = 60,330 km - the equatorial radius of Saturn). The distance depends on the pressure of the solar wind, which depends on solar activity. The average distance to the magnetopause is 22 Rs. On the other side of the planet, the solar wind stretches Saturn's magnetic field into a long magnetic tail.
Saturn Research
Saturn is one of the five planets in the solar system that are easily visible to the naked eye from Earth. At maximum, Saturn's brilliance exceeds first magnitude. To observe the rings of Saturn, you need a telescope with a diameter of at least 15 mm. With an instrument aperture of 100 mm, a darker polar cap, a dark stripe near the tropics and the shadow of the rings on the planet are visible. And at 150-200 mm, four to five bands of clouds in the atmosphere and inhomogeneities in them will become noticeable, but their contrast will be noticeably less than that of Jupiter.
View of Saturn through a modern telescope (left) and through a telescope from Galileo's time (right)
Observing Saturn for the first time through a telescope in 1609-1610, Galileo Galilei noticed that Saturn did not appear as a single celestial body, but as three bodies almost touching each other, and suggested that these were two large “companions” (satellites) of Saturn. Two years later, Galileo repeated the observations and, to his amazement, found no satellites.
In 1659, Huygens, using a more powerful telescope, found that the “companions” are actually a thin flat ring encircling the planet and not touching it. Huygens also discovered Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Since 1675, Cassini has been studying the planet. He noticed that the ring consists of two rings separated by a clearly visible gap - the Cassini gap, and discovered several more large satellites of Saturn: Iapetus, Tethys, Dione and Rhea.
There were no further significant discoveries until 1789, when W. Herschel discovered two more satellites - Mimas and Enceladus. Then a group of British astronomers discovered the Hyperion satellite, with a shape very different from spherical, in orbital resonance with Titan. In 1899, William Pickering discovered Phoebe, which belongs to the class of irregular satellites and does not rotate synchronously with Saturn like most satellites. The period of its revolution around the planet is more than 500 days, while the revolution goes in the opposite direction. In 1944, Gerard Kuiper discovered the presence of a powerful atmosphere on another satellite, Titan. This phenomenon is unique for the satellite in the Solar System.
In the 1990s, Saturn, its moons and rings were studied repeatedly by the Hubble Space Telescope. Long-term observations provided a lot of new information that was not available to Pioneer 11 and Voyagers during their one-time flyby of the planet. Several satellites of Saturn were also discovered, and the maximum thickness of its rings was determined. During measurements carried out on November 20-21, 1995, their detailed structure was determined. During the period of maximum ring inclination in 2003, 30 images of the planet were obtained in different wavelength ranges, which at that time provided the best coverage of the emission spectrum in the entire history of observations. These images allowed scientists to better study the dynamic processes occurring in the atmosphere and create models of the seasonal behavior of the atmosphere. Also, large-scale observations of Saturn were carried out by the Southern European Observatory from 2000 to 2003. Several small, irregularly shaped satellites were discovered.
Research using spacecraft
Eclipse of the Sun by Saturn on September 15, 2006. Photo of the Cassini interplanetary station from a distance of 2.2 million km
In 1979, the US automatic interplanetary station (AIS) Pioneer 11 flew near Saturn for the first time in history. The study of the planet began on August 2, 1979. After the final approach, the device made a flight in the plane of Saturn's rings on September 1, 1979. The flight took place at an altitude 20,000 km above the maximum cloud altitude of the planet. Images of the planet and some of its satellites were obtained, but their resolution was not sufficient to discern surface details. Also, due to the low illumination of Saturn by the Sun, the images were too dim. The device also studied the rings. Among the discoveries was the discovery of a thin F ring. In addition, it was discovered that many areas visible from Earth as light were visible from Pioneer 11 as dark, and vice versa. The device also measured the temperature of Titan. Exploration of the planet continued until September 15, after which the device flew to the more outer parts of the solar system.
In 1980-1981, Pioneer 11 was also followed by the American spacecraft Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. Voyager 1 approached the planet on November 13, 1980, but its exploration of Saturn began three months earlier. A number of high-resolution photographs were taken during the passage. It was possible to obtain images of the satellites: Titan, Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea. At the same time, the device flew near Titan at a distance of only 6,500 km, which made it possible to collect data on its atmosphere and temperature. It was found that Titan's atmosphere is so dense that it does not transmit enough light in the visible range, so photographs of its surface details could not be obtained. After this, the device left the ecliptic plane of the Solar System to photograph Saturn from the pole.
Saturn and its moons - Titan, Janus, Mimas and Prometheus - against the background of Saturn's rings, visible from the edge and disk of the giant planet
A year later, on August 25, 1981, Voyager 2 approached Saturn. During its flight, the device carried out a study of the planet's atmosphere using radar. Data were obtained on the temperature and density of the atmosphere. About 16,000 photographs of observations were sent back to Earth. Unfortunately, during the flights, the camera rotation system jammed for several days, and some of the necessary images could not be obtained. Then the device, using the gravitational force of Saturn, turned around and flew towards Uranus. Also, these devices for the first time discovered the magnetic field of Saturn and explored its magnetosphere, observed storms in the atmosphere of Saturn, obtained detailed images of the structure of the rings and found out their composition. The Maxwell gap and the Keeler gap in the rings were discovered. In addition, several new satellites of the planet were discovered near the rings.
In 1997, the Cassini-Huygens space probe was launched to Saturn, which, after 7 years of flight, reached the Saturn system on July 1, 2004 and entered orbit around the planet. The main objectives of this mission, initially designed for 4 years, were to study the structure and dynamics of the rings and satellites, as well as study the dynamics of the atmosphere and magnetosphere of Saturn and a detailed study of the planet's largest satellite, Titan.
Before entering orbit in June 2004, the spacecraft passed Phoebe and sent high-resolution images and other data back to Earth. In addition, the American Cassini orbiter has flown by Titan several times. Images of large lakes and their coastlines with a significant number of mountains and islands were obtained. Then the special European Huygens probe separated from the apparatus and parachuted on January 14, 2005, to the surface of Titan. The descent took 2 hours 28 minutes. During its descent, Huygens took samples of the atmosphere. According to the interpretation of data from the Huygens probe, the upper part of the clouds consists of methane ice, and the lower part consists of liquid methane and nitrogen.
Since early 2005, scientists have been observing radiation coming from Saturn. On January 23, 2006, a storm occurred on Saturn, which produced a flare 1000 times more powerful than normal radiation. In 2006, NASA reported that the apparatus had detected obvious traces of water that erupted from the geysers of Enceladus. In May 2011, NASA scientists said that Enceladus "appears to be the most habitable place in the solar system after Earth."
Saturn and its moons: in the center of the picture is Enceladus, on the right, in close-up, half of Rhea is visible, from behind which Mimas peeks out. Photo taken by the Cassini probe, July 2011
The photographs taken by Cassini led to other significant discoveries. Using them, previously undiscovered rings of the planet were discovered outside the main bright region of the rings and inside the G and E rings. These rings were named R/2004 S1 and R/2004 S2. It is assumed that the material for these rings could have been formed due to the impact of a meteorite or comet on Janus or Epimetheus. In July 2006, Cassini images revealed the presence of a hydrocarbon lake near Titan's north pole. This fact was finally confirmed by additional photographs in March 2007. In October 2006, a hurricane with a diameter of 8,000 km was discovered at the south pole of Saturn.
In October 2008, Cassini transmitted images of the planet's northern hemisphere. Since 2004, when Cassini flew up to it, noticeable changes have occurred, and it is now painted in unusual colors. The reasons for this are not yet clear. The recent change in colors is believed to be due to the change of seasons. From 2004 to November 2, 2009, 8 new satellites were discovered using the device. Cassini's main mission ended in 2008, when the device completed 74 orbits around the planet. The probe's mission was then extended until September 2010, and then until 2017 to study the full cycle of Saturn's seasons.
In 2009, a joint American-European project between NASA and ESA appeared to launch the Titan Saturn System Mission to study Saturn and its satellites Titan and Enceladus. During it, the station will fly to the Saturn system for 7-8 years, and then become a satellite of Titan for two years. It will also launch a probe balloon into Titan’s atmosphere and a landing module (possibly floating).
Satellites
The largest satellites - Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Titan and Iapetus - were discovered by 1789, but to this day they remain the main objects of research. The diameters of these satellites vary from 397 (Mimas) to 5150 km (Titan), the semi-major axis of the orbit from 186 thousand km (Mimas) to 3561 thousand km (Iapetus). The mass distribution corresponds to the diameter distribution. Titan has the greatest orbital eccentricity, Dione and Tethys have the least. All satellites with known parameters are located above the synchronous orbit, which leads to their gradual removal.
Saturn's moons
The largest of the satellites is Titan. It is also the second largest in the Solar System as a whole, after Jupiter's moon Ganymede. Titan is made up of about half water ice and half rock. This composition is similar to some of the other large satellites of the gas planets, but Titan is very different from them in the composition and structure of its atmosphere, which is mainly composed of nitrogen, and also has small amounts of methane and ethane, which form clouds. Titan is also the only body in the solar system, besides the Earth, for which the existence of liquid on the surface has been proven. The possibility of the emergence of simple organisms is not excluded by scientists. Titan's diameter is 50% larger than that of the Moon. It is also larger than the planet Mercury, although inferior to it in mass.
Other major satellites also have characteristic features. Thus, Iapetus has two hemispheres with different albedo (0.03-0.05 and 0.5, respectively). Therefore, when Giovanni Cassini discovered this satellite, he discovered that it is visible only when it is on a certain side of Saturn. The leading and posterior hemispheres of Dione and Rhea also have their differences. Dione's leading hemisphere is heavily cratered and uniform in brightness. The posterior hemisphere contains dark areas, as well as a web of thin light stripes, which are ice ridges and cliffs. A distinctive feature of Mimas is the huge impact crater Herschel with a diameter of 130 km. Similarly, Tethys has the Odysseus crater with a diameter of 400 km. Enceladus, as imaged by Voyager 2, has a surface with areas of varying geological ages, massive craters in the mid- and high northern latitudes, and minor craters closer to the equator.
As of February 2010, 62 satellites of Saturn are known. 12 of them were discovered using spacecraft: Voyager 1 (1980), Voyager 2 (1981), Cassini (2004-2007). Most of the satellites, except Hyperion and Phoebe, have a synchronous rotation of their own - they are always turned to Saturn with one side. There is no information about the rotation of the smallest satellites. Tethys and Dione are each accompanied by two satellites at the Lagrange points L4 and L5.
During 2006, a team of scientists led by David Jewitt of the University of Hawaii, working at the Japanese Subaru Telescope in Hawaii, announced the discovery of 9 moons of Saturn. All of them belong to the so-called irregular satellites, which are characterized by a retrograde orbit. The period of their revolution around the planet ranges from 862 to 1300 days.
Rings
Comparison of Saturn and Earth
Today we know that all four gaseous giants have rings, but Saturn's is the most prominent. The rings are located at an angle of approximately 28° to the ecliptic plane. Therefore, from the Earth, depending on the relative position of the planets, they look different: they can be seen both in the form of rings and “edge-on”. As Huygens also assumed, the rings are not a solid solid body, but consist of billions of tiny particles located in circumplanetary orbit. This was proven by spectrometric observations by A. A. Belopolsky at the Pulkovo Observatory and two other scientists in 1895-1896.
There are three main rings and a fourth - thinner one. Together they reflect more light than the disk of Saturn itself. The three main rings are usually designated by the first letters of the Latin alphabet. Ring B is the central one, the widest and brightest, it is separated from the outer ring A by the Cassini gap, almost 4000 km wide, which contains the thinnest, almost transparent rings. Inside the A ring there is a thin gap called the Encke separating strip. Ring C, located even closer to the planet than B, is almost transparent.
Saturn's rings are very thin. With a diameter of about 250,000 km, their thickness does not reach even a kilometer (although there are also peculiar mountains on the surface of the rings). Despite its impressive appearance, the amount of substance that makes up the rings is extremely small. If it were assembled into one monolith, its diameter would not exceed 100 km. The images obtained by the probes show that the rings are actually formed from thousands of rings alternating with slits; the picture resembles the tracks of gramophone records. The particles that make up the rings range in size from 1 centimeter to 10 meters. In composition, they are 93% ice with minor impurities, which may include copolymers formed under the influence of solar radiation and silicates, and 7% carbon.
There is consistency in the movement of particles in the rings and the planet's satellites. Some of them, called “shepherd moons,” play a role in keeping the rings in place. Mimas, for example, is in a 2:1 resonance with the Cassinian gap and, under the influence of its attraction, matter is removed from it, and Pan is located inside the Encke dividing strip. In 2010, data was obtained from the Cassini probe that suggests that Saturn's rings are oscillating. The oscillations consist of constant disturbances introduced by Mimas and spontaneous disturbances arising due to the interaction of particles flying in the ring. The origin of Saturn's rings is not yet entirely clear. According to one theory, put forward in 1849 by Edouard Roche, the rings were formed due to the disintegration of a liquid satellite under the influence of tidal forces. According to another, the satellite disintegrated due to the impact of a comet or asteroid.
Origin of the name The name "Saturn" comes from the Roman name Kronos, who was the lord of the Titans in Greek mythology. The word "Saturn" is the root of the English word "Saturday".
Position in the Solar System Planet Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest in the Solar System. Although the other gas giants in the solar system - Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune - also have rings, Saturn's rings are without a doubt the most unusual.
The nature of the surface of Saturn is a ball consisting almost entirely of hydrogen and helium. As you go deeper into the planet, the density and temperature change, but with all this, it would not be correct to say that Saturn has a solid surface. If you had the opportunity to fall onto the surface of Saturn, you would literally fall into it, experiencing heat and pressure until you were completely crushed inside the planet. It goes without saying that it is impossible to stand on the surface of Saturn. But if someone succeeded, they would experience about 91% of Earth's gravity. In other words, a scale that shows 100 kg on Earth would show 91 kg on Saturn.
The atmosphere of the planet is very similar to a ball, made almost entirely of hydrogen and helium. Its density and temperature change as it moves deeper into the planet. The planet's outer atmosphere consists of 93% molecular hydrogen, the rest helium and trace amounts of ammonia, acetylene, ethane, phosphine and methane. It is these trace elements that create the visible streaks and clouds. The planet's core is rocky with a large mass, sufficient to trap large amounts of gases in the early solar nebula. Its core, like that of other gas giants, would have to form and become massive much faster than that of other planets in order to have time to acquire primary gases.
satellites Saturn has 53 official moons and 9 preliminary (unofficial) moons. The most famous of Saturn's moons is probably Titan. It is the second largest moon in the solar system after Jupiter's moon Ganymede. Titan is larger than the planet Mercury. Some of the other moons are: Atlas, Calypso, Dione, Enceladus, Hyperion, Iapetus, Janus, Mimas, Phoebe, and Tethys.
The satellite Mimas is the closest large satellite to Saturn. It orbits the planet at a distance of 185,600 km and is composed almost entirely of water ice. There are no traces of internal activity visible on the surface of Mimas; it is entirely covered with craters. The largest crater was named Herschel, its diameter is about 130 km.
The moon Enceladus is the second large moon of Saturn. It orbits the planet at a distance of 238,100 km. It is the brightest satellite in the solar system. Its surface is very young, there are relatively few craters on it (and there are areas where there are none at all). The satellite is still geologically active. In the area of its south pole there is a system of cracks from which geysers of fine icy dust shoot into space. This dust then disperses along the entire orbit of Enceladus, forming Saturn's outermost and rarefied E ring. Despite its small size, Enceladus has a tenuous atmosphere. Its composition: 65% water vapor, 20% molecular hydrogen, there is also some carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and nitrogen.
Moon Tethys is the third major moon of Saturn. It orbits the planet at a distance of 294,700 km. Apparently, the satellite consists almost entirely of water ice. The ancient surface of Tethys is covered with numerous craters. However, traces of geological processes are also noticeable on it, for example, a huge fault that stretches for several hundred kilometers and is called Ithaca.
Moon Dione is the fourth major moon of Saturn. It orbits the planet at a distance of 377,400 km. The higher average density suggests that Dione contains a significant proportion of rock. Its surface is older than the surface of Enceladus, but much younger than the surface of Tethys or Rhea. The icy crust of the satellite is cut by numerous faults and canyons, which indicates the relatively recent (tens and hundreds of millions of years) geological activity of Dione.
Moon Rhea is the fifth major moon of Saturn. It orbits the planet at a distance of 527,100 km. Rhea's diameter is 1528 km, it is the second (after Titan) largest satellite of Saturn. Even though Rhea is larger than Dione, her surface is much older. In fact, it is all dotted with craters; there is no living place on it! The bright spot almost in the center of the image is a large young crater that has exposed the pure ice of the depths.
Moon Titan is the largest moon of Saturn and the second largest moon in the Solar System. In size, it is even slightly larger than Mercury, although it is inferior to it in mass (Titan’s mass is 40% of the mass of Mercury and 1.83 times the mass of the Moon).
The moon Iapetus is the seventh major moon of Saturn. It orbits the planet at a distance of 3,560,800 km, in contrast to closer satellites, which orbit almost in the plane of Saturn's equator. The diameter of Iapetus is 1436 km, it is quite a bit smaller than Rhea. One of the amazing features of Iapetus is that one of its hemispheres (the leading) reflects 6 times less light than the other (the driven)! The hemispheres are covered with a reddish dark substance of unknown composition and origin. As you move towards the poles, the layer of matter becomes thinner and disappears at the poles. Another intriguing feature of Iapetus's surface is the 10-kilometer-long mountain ridge that runs parallel to the equator for almost half the moon's diameter.
Rings Saturn is the most famous planet due to its rings. However, this is not the only planet with rings. Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune also have their own rings. However, it is Saturn that is the favorite object for many observers. Its beautiful rings are 169,800 miles wide (about 273,266 km). But the rings are surprisingly thin, estimated to be less than a kilometer thick. The rings are divided into groups: ring B, ring C, ring D, ring E, ring F and G. There are 7 rings in total. The rings are not solid, but rather composed of particles of ice, dust and rock. The rings are held in place around Saturn by the moons that also orbit the large planet.
Temperature With an average temperature of minus 288 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 178 degrees Celsius), Saturn is a fairly cool planet. Although there are some slight differences when moving from the equator to the poles, most of Saturn's temperature change is horizontal. This is because most of the heat comes from its core rather than from the Sun. The temperature in Saturn's atmosphere increases along with the pressure as it descends into the center. Since Saturn does not have a surface in our understanding, scientists consider the surface of Saturn to be the level at which the pressure exceeds one bar, approximately the same pressure as the Earth at sea level.
Dimensions The planet has an equatorial diameter of 120,536 km, which is 9.44 times larger than that of Earth. The radius is 60,268 km, making it the second largest planet in our solar system, second only to Jupiter. It, like all other planets, is an oblate spheroid. This means that its equatorial diameter is greater than the diameter measured across the poles. In the case of Saturn, this distance is quite significant, due to the high speed of rotation of the planet. The polar diameter is 108,728 km, which is 9.796% less than the equatorial one, so Saturn's shape is oval.
Interesting Facts Saturn has 62 moons, in fact about 40% of the moons in our solar system orbit around it. Many of these satellites are very small and not visible from Earth. The latter were discovered by the Cassini spacecraft, and scientists expect the spacecraft to find even more icy satellites over time. Despite the fact that Saturn is too hostile for any form of life that we know, its moon Enceladus is one of the most suitable candidates for the search for life. Enceladus is notable for having ice geysers on its surface. There is some mechanism (probably the tidal influence of Saturn) that creates enough heat for liquid water to exist. Some scientists believe that there is a chance of life on Enceladus.
Characteristics of the planet:
- Distance from the Sun: 1,427 million km
- Planet diameter: ~ 120,000 km*
- Day on the planet: 10h 13m 23s**
- Year on the planet: 29.46 years***
- t° on the surface: -180°C
- Atmosphere: 96% hydrogen; 3% helium; 0.4% methane and traces of other elements
- Satellites: 18
* diameter along the planet's equator
**period of rotation around its own axis (in Earth days)
***period of orbit around the Sun (in Earth days)
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun - the average distance to the star is almost 9.6 AU. e. (≈780 million km).
Presentation: planet Saturn
The planet's orbital period is 29.46 years, and the rotation time around its axis is almost 10 hours 40 minutes. The equatorial radius of Saturn is 60,268 km, and its mass is more than 568 thousand billion megatons (with an average density of planetary matter of ≈0.69 g/cc). Thus, Saturn is the second largest and most massive planet in the solar system after Jupiter. At an atmospheric pressure level of 1 bar, the atmospheric temperature is 134 K.
Internal structure
The main chemical elements that make up Saturn are hydrogen and helium. These gases transform at high pressure inside the planet, first into a liquid state, and then (at a depth of 30 thousand km) into a solid state, since under the physical conditions existing there (pressure ≈3 million atm.) hydrogen acquires a metallic structure. A strong magnetic field is created in this metal structure; its intensity at the top of the clouds near the equator is 0.2 G. Below the layer of metallic hydrogen is a solid core of heavier elements, such as iron.
Atmosphere and surface
In addition to hydrogen and helium, the planet's atmosphere contains small amounts of methane, ethane, acetylene, ammonia, phosphine, arsine, germane and other substances. The average molecular weight is 2.135 g/mol. The main characteristic of the atmosphere is homogeneity, which does not allow one to distinguish small details on the surface. The wind speed on Saturn is high - at the equator it reaches 480 m/s. The temperature of the upper boundary of the atmosphere is 85 K (-188°C). There are many methane clouds in the upper layers of the atmosphere - several dozen belts and a number of individual vortices. In addition, powerful thunderstorms and auroras are observed quite often here.
Satellites of the planet Saturn
Saturn is a unique planet that has a ring system with billions of small objects, particles of ice, iron and rock, as well as many moons - all of which orbit the planet. Some satellites are large. For example, Titan, one of the large satellites of the planets in the Solar System, second in size only to Jupiter’s satellite Ganymede. Titan is the only satellite in the entire solar system that has an atmosphere similar to that of Earth, where the pressure is only one and a half times higher than that of the surface of planet Earth. In total, Saturn has 62 satellites out of those already discovered; they have their own orbits around the planet, the rest of the particles and small asteroids are part of the so-called ring system. More and more new satellites are beginning to be discovered by researchers, so in 2013 the last confirmed satellites were Egeon and S/2009 S 1.
The main feature of Saturn, which distinguishes it from other planets, is its huge system of rings - its width is almost 115 thousand km with a thickness of about 5 km. The constituent elements of these formations are particles (their size reaches several tens of meters) consisting of ice, iron oxide and rocks. In addition to the system of rings, this planet has a large number of natural satellites - about 60. The largest is Titan (this satellite is the second largest in the solar system), whose radius exceeds 2.5 thousand km.
With the help of the Cassini interplanetary probe, a unique phenomenon on the planet, a thunderstorm, was captured. It turns out that on Saturn, just like on our planet Earth, thunderstorms occur, only they occur many times less often, but the duration of the thunderstorm lasts for several months. This thunderstorm in the video lasted on Saturn from January to October in 2009 and was a real storm on the planet. Radiofrequency crackles (characterizing lightning flashes) are also heard in the video, as Georg Fischer (a scientist at the Institute for Space Research in Austria) said about this unusual phenomenon - “For the first time, we are simultaneously observing lightning and hearing radio data.”
Exploring the Planet
Galileo was the first to observe Saturn in 1610 through his telescope with 20x magnification. The ring was discovered by Huygens in 1658. The greatest contribution to the study of this planet was made by Cassini, who discovered several satellites and breaks in the structure of the ring, the widest of which bears his name. With the development of astronautics, the study of Saturn was continued using automatic spacecraft, the first of which was Pioneer-11 (the expedition took place in 1979). Space research continued with the Voyager and Cassini-Huygens series.
The starry sky has always attracted romantics, poets, artists and lovers with its beauty. Since time immemorial, people have admired the scattering of stars and attributed special magical properties to them.
Ancient astrologers, for example, were able to draw a parallel between the date of birth of a person and the star that was shining brightly at that moment. It was believed that it could influence not only the totality of the character traits of a newborn, but also his entire future fate. Observing the stars helped farmers determine the best date for sowing and harvesting. We can say that much in the life of ancient people was subject to the influence of stars and planets, so it is not surprising that humanity has been trying to study the planets closest to Earth for centuries.
Many of them have now been studied quite well, but some can present scientists with many surprises. Astronomers primarily include Saturn as such planets. A description of this gas giant can be found in any astronomy textbook. However, scientists themselves believe that this is one of the least studied planets, all the mysteries and secrets of which humanity is not yet even able to list.
Today you will receive the most detailed information about Saturn. The mass of the gas giant, its size, description and comparative characteristics with the Earth - you can learn all this from this article. Perhaps you will hear some facts for the first time, and some will seem simply incredible to you.
Ancient ideas about Saturn
Our ancestors could not accurately calculate the mass of Saturn and give it characteristics, but they definitely understood how majestic this planet was and even worshiped it. Historians believe that Saturn, which is one of the five planets clearly visible from Earth with the naked eye, was known to people for a very long time. It received its name in honor of the god of fertility and agriculture. This deity was highly revered among the Greeks and Romans, but later the attitude towards him changed slightly.
The fact is that the Greeks began to associate Saturn with Kronos. This titan was very bloodthirsty and even devoured his own children. Therefore, he was treated without due respect and with some fear. But the Romans revered Saturn very much and even considered him a god who gave humanity much of the knowledge necessary for life. It was the god of agriculture who taught ignorant people how to build living quarters and preserve the harvest until next year. In gratitude to Saturn, the Romans organized real holidays that lasted several days. During this period, even slaves could forget about their insignificant position and fully feel like free people.
It is noteworthy that in many ancient cultures, Saturn, which scientists were able to characterize only millennia later, was associated with strong deities who confidently control the destinies of people in many worlds. Modern historians often wonder that ancient civilizations could have known much more about this giant planet than we do today. Perhaps other knowledge was available to them and we just have to, discarding the dry statistical data, penetrate into the secrets of Saturn.
Brief description of the planet
It is quite difficult to tell in a few words what planet Saturn actually is. Therefore, in the current section we will provide the reader with well-known data that will help to form some idea about this amazing celestial body.
Saturn is the sixth planet of our native solar system. Since it mainly consists of gases, it is classified as a gas giant. The closest “relative” of Saturn is usually called Jupiter, but besides it, Uranus and Neptune can also be included in this group. It is noteworthy that all gas planets can be proud of their rings, but only Saturn has them in such quantity that you can see its majestic “belt” even from Earth. Modern astronomers rightfully consider it the most beautiful and fascinating planet. After all, the rings of Saturn (we will tell you what this magnificence consists of in one of the next sections of the article) almost constantly change their color and each time their photo surprises with new shades. Therefore, the gas giant is one of the most recognizable among other planets
The mass of Saturn (5.68 × 10 26 kg) compared to the Earth is extremely large, we will talk about this a little later. But the diameter of the planet, which, according to the latest data, is more than one hundred and twenty thousand kilometers, confidently puts it in second place in the solar system. Only Jupiter, the leader in this list, can compete with Saturn.
The gas giant has its own atmosphere, magnetic fields and a huge number of satellites, which were gradually discovered by astronomers. Interestingly, the density of the planet is noticeably less than the density of water. Therefore, if your imagination allows you to imagine a huge pool filled with water, then rest assured that Saturn will not drown in it. Like a huge beach ball, it will slowly glide across the surface.
Origin of the gas giant
Despite the fact that spacecraft have been actively studying Saturn over the past decades, scientists still cannot say with confidence how exactly the planet was formed. To date, two main hypotheses have been put forward, which have their followers and opponents.
The Sun and Saturn are often compared in composition. Indeed, they contain a large concentration of hydrogen, which has allowed some scientists to hypothesize that our star and the planets of the solar system were formed at almost the same time. Massive gas accumulations became the ancestors of Saturn and the Sun. However, none of the supporters of this theory can explain why, so to speak, a planet was formed from the original material, in one case, and a star in the other. No one can yet give a decent explanation for the differences in their composition.
According to the second hypothesis, the formation of Saturn lasted hundreds of millions of years. Initially, solid particles were formed, which gradually reached the mass of our Earth. However, at some point the planet lost a large amount of gas and at the second stage it actively increased it from outer space by gravity.
Scientists hope that in the future they will be able to discover the secret of the formation of Saturn, but before that they still have many decades of waiting. After all, only the Cassini spacecraft, which operated in its orbit for thirteen long years, managed to get as close to the planet as possible. This fall, it completed its mission, having collected a huge amount of data for observers that has yet to be processed.
Planet orbit
Saturn and the Sun are separated by almost one and a half billion kilometers, so the planet does not receive much light and heat from our main luminary. It is noteworthy that the gas giant rotates around the Sun in a slightly elongated orbit. However, in recent years, scientists have argued that almost all planets do this. Saturn makes a full revolution in almost thirty years.
The planet rotates extremely quickly around its axis, requiring about ten Earth hours per revolution. If we lived on Saturn, then this is how long a day would last. Interestingly, scientists tried to calculate the planet’s full rotation around its axis several times. During this time, an error of approximately six minutes arose; within the framework of science, it is considered quite impressive. Some scientists attribute it to the inaccuracy of instruments, but others argue that over the years our native Earth began to rotate more slowly, which allowed the error to form.
Planet structure
Since the size of Saturn is often compared to Jupiter, it is not surprising that the structures of these planets are very similar to each other. Scientists conventionally divide the gas giant into three layers, the center of which is the rocky core. It has a high density and is at least ten times more massive than the earth's core. The second layer, where it is located, is considered to be liquid metallic hydrogen. Its thickness is approximately fourteen and a half thousand kilometers. The outer layer of the planet is made up of molecular hydrogen; the thickness of this layer is measured at eighteen and a half thousand kilometers.
Scientists studying the planet found out one interesting fact - it emits two and a half times more radiation into outer space than it receives from the star. They tried to find a definite explanation for this phenomenon, drawing a parallel with Jupiter. However, this still remains another mystery of the planet, because the size of Saturn is smaller than its “brother”, which emits much more modest amounts of radiation into the surrounding world. Therefore, today such activity of the planet is explained by the friction of helium flows. But scientists cannot say how viable this theory is.
Planet Saturn: atmospheric composition
If you observe the planet through a telescope, it becomes noticeable that the color of Saturn has somewhat muted pale orange shades. On its surface one can notice stripe-like formations, which are often formed into bizarre shapes. However, they are not static and quickly transform.
When we talk about gaseous planets, it is quite difficult for the reader to understand how exactly one can determine the difference between a conventional surface and an atmosphere. Scientists also faced a similar problem, so it was decided to determine a certain starting point. It is here that the temperature begins to drop, and here astronomers draw an invisible boundary.
The atmosphere of Saturn is almost ninety-six percent hydrogen. Of the constituent gases, I would also like to mention helium; it is present in an amount of three percent. The remaining one percent is divided between ammonia, methane and other substances. For all living organisms known to us, the planet’s atmosphere is destructive.
The thickness of the atmospheric layer is close to sixty kilometers. Surprisingly, Saturn, like Jupiter, is often referred to as the “planet of storms.” Of course, by Jupiter's standards they are insignificant. But for earthlings, a wind of almost two thousand kilometers per hour will seem like the real end of the world. Such storms occur quite often on Saturn; sometimes scientists notice formations in the atmosphere that resemble our hurricanes. In a telescope, they appear as vast white spots, and hurricanes form extremely rarely. Therefore, observing them is considered a great success for astronomers.
Rings of Saturn
The color of Saturn and its rings is approximately the same, although this “belt” poses a huge number of problems for scientists that they are not yet able to solve. It is especially difficult to answer questions about the origin and age of this magnificence. To date, the scientific community has put forward several hypotheses on this topic, which no one can prove or disprove yet.
First of all, many young astronomers are interested in what Saturn’s rings are made of. Scientists can answer this question quite accurately. The structure of the rings is very heterogeneous; it consists of billions of particles that move at enormous speed. The diameter of these particles ranges from one centimeter to ten meters. They consist of ninety-eight percent ice. The remaining two percent are represented by various impurities.
Despite the impressive appearance that Saturn's rings present, they are very thin. Their thickness on average does not even reach a kilometer, while their diameter reaches two hundred and fifty thousand kilometers.
For simplicity, the rings of the planet are usually called one of the letters of the Latin alphabet; the three rings are considered the most noticeable. But the second is considered to be the brightest and most beautiful.
Ring formation: theories and hypotheses
Since ancient times, people have puzzled over exactly how Saturn's rings were formed. Initially, a theory was put forward about the simultaneous formation of the planet and its rings. However, this version was later refuted, because scientists were amazed by the purity of the ice that makes up Saturn’s “belt.” If the rings were the same age as the planet, then their particles would be covered with a layer that can be compared to dirt. Since this did not happen, the scientific community had to look for other explanations.
The theory about an exploded satellite of Saturn is considered traditional. According to this statement, approximately four billion years ago, one of the planet’s satellites came too close to it. According to scientists, its diameter could reach up to three hundred kilometers. Under the influence of tidal forces, it was torn into billions of particles that formed the rings of Saturn. The version of the collision of two satellites is also being considered. This theory seems most plausible, but recent data make it possible to determine the age of the rings as one hundred million years.
Surprisingly, the particles of the rings constantly collide with each other, forming into new formations and thereby complicating their study. Modern scientists cannot yet reveal the mystery of the formation of Saturn’s “belt,” which has added to the list of mysteries of this planet.
Moons of Saturn
The gas giant has a huge number of satellites. Forty percent of all known systems revolve around it. To date, sixty-three moons of Saturn have been discovered, and many of them present no less surprises than the planet itself.
The size of the satellites ranges from three hundred kilometers to more than five thousand kilometers in diameter. The easiest way for astronomers to discover large moons, most of them were able to be described in the late eighties of the eighteenth century. It was then that Titan, Rhea, Enceladus and Iapetus were discovered. These moons are still of great interest to scientists and are closely studied by them.
Interestingly, all of Saturn's moons are very different from each other. They are united by the fact that they are always turned to the planet with only one side and rotate almost synchronously. Three moons are of greatest interest to astronomers:
- Titanium.
- Enceladus.
Titan is the second largest in the solar system. It is not surprising that it is second only to one of the satellites of Titan, half the size of the Moon, and its size is comparable to Mercury and even exceeds it. Interestingly, the composition of this giant moon of Saturn contributed to the formation of the atmosphere. In addition, there is liquid on it, which puts Titan on a par with Earth. Some scientists even suggest that there may be some form of life on the surface of the satellite. Of course, it will be significantly different from Earth’s, because Titan’s atmosphere consists of nitrogen, methane and ethane, and on its surface you can see lakes of methane and islands with a bizarre topography formed by liquid nitrogen.
Enceladus is an equally amazing satellite of Saturn. Scientists call it the lightest celestial body in the solar system because of its surface, completely covered with an icy crust. Scientists are confident that under this layer of ice there is a real ocean in which living organisms may well exist.
Rhea surprised astronomers not long ago. After taking numerous pictures, they were able to see several thin rings around it. It is too early to talk about their composition and size, but this discovery was shocking, because previously it was not even assumed that rings could rotate around the satellite.
Saturn and Earth: a comparative analysis of these two planets
Scientists rarely compare Saturn and Earth. These celestial bodies are too different to compare them with each other. But today we decided to broaden the reader’s horizons a little and still take a fresh look at these planets. Is there anything in common between them?
First of all, it comes to mind to compare the mass of Saturn and the Earth; this difference will be incredible: the gas giant is ninety-five times larger than our planet. It is nine and a half times larger than the Earth. Therefore, our planet can fit more than seven hundred times in its volume.
Interestingly, the gravity on Saturn will be ninety-two percent of Earth's gravity. If we assume that a person weighing one hundred kilograms is transferred to Saturn, then his weight will decrease to ninety-two kilograms.
Every schoolchild knows that the earth's axis has a certain angle of inclination relative to the Sun. This allows the seasons to change each other, and people to enjoy all the beauties of nature. Surprisingly, Saturn's axis has a similar tilt. Therefore, you can also observe the change of seasons on the planet. However, they do not have a pronounced character and it is quite difficult to trace them.
Like the Earth, Saturn has its own magnetic field, and recently scientists witnessed real aurora over the planet's surface. It pleased me with its long glow and bright purple hues.
Even from our small comparative analysis it is clear that both planets, despite their incredible differences, also have something that unites them. Perhaps this forces scientists to constantly turn their gaze towards Saturn. However, some of them laughingly say that if it were possible to look at both planets side by side, the Earth would look like a coin, and Saturn would look like an inflated basketball.
The study of the gas giant that is Saturn is a process that has puzzled scientists from all over the world. More than once they sent probes and various devices to him. Since the last mission was completed this year, the next one is planned only for 2020. However, now no one can say whether it will take place. Negotiations have been ongoing for several years about Russia's participation in this large-scale project. According to preliminary calculations, the new device will take about nine years to get into Saturn's orbit, and another four years to study the planet and its largest satellite. Based on all of the above, you can be sure that revealing all the secrets of the planet of storms is a matter of the future. Perhaps you, our readers today, will take part in this.