Saturn: interesting facts, characteristics of the planet. Interesting facts about the planet Saturn All about the planet Saturn interesting facts

What comes to mind first when we talk about the planet Saturn? The fact that it has rings, is very distant, next to Jupiter. This is done in elementary school, if not earlier. You can remember that Saturn is a gas giant and that it is the last planet in the solar system visible to the naked eye.


What else do we know about Saturn? It is very cold there. And it does not have a solid surface, since it belongs to the gas giants.

Saturn with rings! But this has already been said...

It’s hard to remember anything else, more specific, offhand. Let's draw a portrait of this truly distant and at the same time close, cold and mysterious planet.

People first learned about Saturn's rings in 1610

Or rather, it was not yet known that the strange rounded protrusions that I saw Galileo Galilei into your telescope, they are shaped like rings. Progressive for that time, but extremely imperfect by our standards, the telescope made it possible to see only two blurred edges of the rings, similar to the ears of a saucepan. Galileo himself believed that he saw two satellites, or two “Moons” of Saturn.


It was possible to clarify things only 45 years later. In 1655, Christian Huygens looked through a more accurate, improved telescope. He was the first to call the unusual protrusions rings. He also discovered the largest satellite of Saturn, which a little later was given the name Titan.

People took the first close-up photographs of Saturn in 1979

The first spacecraft that managed to take photographs of Saturn was Pioneer 11 in 1979. Since then, “guests” have visited the planet three more times: in 1980, 1981 and 2004. The last visit turned out to be the most fruitful: high-quality images made it possible to obtain a lot of new scientific data, including on the structure of the rings.

Planet Saturn is lighter than water

Indeed, this gas giant, which contains a lot of helium, has a very low density. The age of Saturn's rings varies, as proven by the latest research.

Sometimes the rings disappear. At least at first glance

Why do Saturn's rings sometimes become invisible? Of course, they don't disappear anywhere. Only their perspective changes, that is, the angle of inclination at which they are visible from the Earth. If you see the rings from the edges, they are really almost invisible. Try to look at the brim of a hat, such as a top hat, if it is strictly at eye level. Now tilt the cylinder several times, at different angles.

Is there life on Saturn's moon?

Enceladus is one of the largest moons of Saturn. In scientific circles it is famous for the geysers discovered. It contains liquid water, which means life is presumably possible.

Photographs of Saturn near its North Pole show the outline of a hexagon. It is not yet known what physical phenomena this figure corresponds to: scientists have not yet come to a consensus.

Saturn has about 200 moons

Of these, 62 have an exact orbit established, and fifty-three have been given names. In addition to relatively large celestial bodies - satellites, there are about 150 “small moons”.

The strongest wind blows on Saturn

The speed of the Saturnian wind reaches 1,800 km/h. For comparison, on Earth, the strongest wind recorded a speed of “only” 483 km/h.

Everything mentioned above refers to a planet - an astronomical object. But we can talk about Saturn from other points of view, in other areas - such as mythology, culture, linguistics.

A cruel god who devours his children

In Roman mythology, the god Saturn was revered; in ancient Greek, the god Chronos (or Kronos) corresponded to him. In culture, the most famous plot is in which he devours his own children so that none of them deprive him of power. Many works of art are dedicated to this story. The most famous of them are a painting by Rubens and a fresco by F. Goya.

The history of the creation of the fresco is dramatic: in his declining years, Francisco Goya, who had survived several serious illnesses, purchased a house near Madrid. The artist tried to solve painful internal problems by creating frescoes - paintings directly on the wall of the house, full of despair and horror. They were not intended for public viewing, and only after the artist's death were some of the works transferred to canvas.

One of the sculptures in the Summer Garden in St. Petersburg depicts Kronos, an evil old man, ready to sink his teeth into a baby.

• In astrological practice, Saturn correlates with the concept of time, as well as with situations that require all kinds of restrictions.
• In Chinese and Japanese, the name Saturn is interpreted as “Earth star”: it consists of two hieroglyphs with the meanings “earth” and “star”.
• Traditionally, each day of the week corresponded to one of the luminaries (Sun and Moon) or one of the visible planets. Saturn Day is Saturday, which is reflected in its name in many languages, especially European ones. Remember, for example, the English word Saturday.
• In medieval alchemy, Saturn corresponded to lead.
• The year of Saturn, or the period of its revolution around the Sun (as seen from Earth) is 29 years 165 days 11.68 hours.
• Saturn's rings formed at different times.

The planet Saturn has been providing humanity since the 16th century, from the very moment when the cosmic body was first noticed by Galileo, mistaking its rings for satellites. At the same time, it is not possible to thoroughly study this planet, and scientific expeditions are not expected to be sent there in the foreseeable future. The reason for this is the harsh atmosphere and lack of solid soil.

A promising place to search for life

Paradox: Saturn is the complete opposite of Earth. But if there is a chance to detect signs of intelligent beings outside our planet, then most likely in the immediate vicinity of this gas giant. On one of its many satellites, Enceladus, whose diameter is 505 km, which is only 5 km larger than the crater of Wilkes Earth under the ice sheet of Antarctica, the existence of living organisms is theoretically possible. Scientists came to this conclusion after discovering geysers on Enceladus. And where there is water, that means there is life...

What is known about the planet Saturn

The eternal rival of Jupiter, inferior to first place in size and number of satellites (62 and 67, respectively). Both planets have rings and are made of gas. The rings enveloping Saturn are visible from Earth, but those related to Jupiter are not. It is impossible to install spacecraft on the planet to study the composition of the surface. The entire planet is a huge gas clump covered with a hydrogen atmosphere.

The second main component of the atmosphere is helium. Another property that makes Saturn look like a balloon is density. The giant is inferior in density to water and has “volatility”, like a gas ball.

Since there is no solid surface here, landing on Saturn is not possible. But some information about him is still known:

One of the most beautiful and unexplored planets in the solar system is the planet Saturn. Perhaps in the future other interesting facts about it will be discovered that humanity has yet to learn.

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun, belonging to the group of gas giants. It is named after the Roman god Saturn and is the second largest after Jupiter. An interesting fact is that this planet was the last to be discovered by ancient astronomers.

Thanks to its pronounced rings, Saturn is one of the most beautiful celestial bodies in the world.

At the same time, today the planet Saturn is less studied than all its fellows. Although scientists are soon planning to expand their knowledge about this planet through the new space project Cassini.

It is worth noting that, in contrast to Saturn, one of the most studied planets is. Not long ago, a famous engineer and inventor set out to study Mars even more.

In one of his interviews, he stated that by 2025 a human foot will certainly set foot on its surface.

Despite all this, overall Saturn has the lowest density compared to the other 8 planets.

Internal structure of Saturn

According to astronomers' calculations, the density of this planet is less than that of water. Theoretically, if we could throw Saturn into water, it would float on its surface like a soccer ball.

Orbit and rotation

One year on it lasts about 10,759 Earth days, that is, almost 30 years. This planet makes one revolution around its axis in 10 hours and 34 minutes, which is only slightly inferior to the rotation speed of Jupiter.

Rings of Saturn

Thanks to its rings, Saturn has gained great popularity among people as even children know about this interesting fact. But what are these rings made of?

It turns out that the ring system consists of trillions of ice fragments and other space objects. The fact is that ice perfectly reflects light, as a result of which we can clearly see the rings of Saturn.

Interestingly, experts still cannot determine their exact origin. According to the official version, the rings arose as a result of the disintegration of one of Saturn's moons.

One way or another, they are kept in orbit thanks to the gravitational force of the planet Saturn.

1. The total mass of Saturn and Jupiter accounts for more than 90% of the mass of all planets in the solar system.
2. Experts believe that Saturn was first discovered by the ancient Babylonians.
3. In Roman mythology, Saturn is represented as the father of Jupiter, the king of the gods.
4. An interesting fact is that Saturn emits more heat than it receives from the Sun.
5. Since Saturn has a huge rotation speed on its axis and a gaseous atmosphere, it is considered the most oval of the 8 planets. Its equatorial diameter is 10% larger than the polar one.
6. Saturn is sandy in color because its upper atmosphere is made up of ammonia particles.
7. Despite the fact that Saturn belongs to the group of gas giants, experts suggest that inside it there is a very solid core surrounded by helium and hydrogen.
8. Saturn has about 150 moons covered in ice. Interestingly, Titan, one of its moons, has methane lakes, and most of the surface is covered with liquid nitrogen.

Do you want to know more about the planets? We present to your attention 10 interesting facts about Saturn.

• 1. Saturn is considered the least dense planet in the solar system.

If you imagine a pool of water comparable in size to Saturn, then this planet would not drown in it. With a density of water of 1 g/cm?, Earth - 5.52 g/cm?, the density of Saturn is only 0.68 g/cm?.

• 2. Saturn's poles are flattened.

This is caused by the high speed of rotation of this planet around its axis.

The distance between the center of Saturn and its poles is 54,000 km, the equator is located at a distance of 60,300 km from the center of the planet. Thus, the poles are 6300 km closer to the center than the equator.

• 3. Mentioning interesting facts about Saturn, they remember that in past centuries, astronomers mistook Saturn’s rings for moons.

Pointing his telescope towards Saturn in 1610, Galileo was the first to see the rings around the planet. But he mistook the rings for the moons around Saturn.

Some time later, using a new telescope, Christan Huygens was able to determine that Saturn is surrounded by rings, not moons.

• 4. In fact, Saturn is much smaller than it seems to observers.

In the center of this planet there is a small core consisting of rocks and ice. The remaining elements of Saturn are hydrogen, helium and methane.

The winds blowing on the planet reach speeds of 1800 km/h.

• 5. There are 62 moons around Saturn.

The first in the number of moons is Jupiter with its 63 satellites, the second is Saturn. Some of them are huge, for example, Titan is the second largest moon in the solar system. Most moons are small - only a couple of kilometers across.

• 6. Day and night on the planet Saturn.

Determining Saturn's actual rotation speed is no easy task. The planet does not have a solid surface; moving gas distorts the picture. To estimate the planet's rotation speed, scientists used analysis of the rotation of its magnetic field. Initial estimates were 10 hours 45 minutes, and subsequent analyzes gave an updated estimate of 10 hours 32 minutes.

• 7. A year on Saturn lasts 30 Earth years.

This planet completes its full revolution around the Sun over a significant period of 30 Earth years. Saturn's rings are not always visible. This is explained by changes in its angle of inclination and rotation of the planet.

• 8. The deep layers of Saturn's atmosphere have a pressure 3 million times higher than the pressure of the Earth's atmosphere.

Saturn belongs to the gas type of planets. Its atmosphere at a depth of 30 thousand km turns first into a liquid and then even into a solid state (it is called metallic hydrogen). Obviously, the person would be flattened into a point upon impact.

• 9. Saturn is visible from Earth with the naked eye.

When, going out on a cloudless night and turning your gaze to the sky, you see the stars, the brightest of them will be Saturn.

• 10. There are also northern lights on Saturn.

When analyzing images of Saturn's north pole taken by the spacecraft's infrared camera, scientists discovered auroras in them. Something similar has not been discovered on any other planet in the solar system. The hurricanes raging on Saturn are very similar to those on Earth. Huge, funnel-shaped spots are clearly visible from space - evidence of bad weather on Saturn.

Interesting video about Saturn. Saturn lord of the rings:

The universe is full of mysteries, as evidenced by interesting facts about the planet Saturn- a celestial body named after the long-time ruler of the Titans - Kronos.

1. The planet's shape resembles an oblate ball. Saturn acquired this shape as a result of rapid rotation around its axis. A day here lasts only 10.7 hours. Due to such intense rotation, the planet flattens itself.
2. The celestial body has a huge number of satellites (63). Scientists claim that some of them have the necessary conditions for life.

   

3. Saturn has a developed system of rings, each of which has a bright and dark side. However, the inhabitants of the Earth have the opportunity to see exclusively the bright side. From our planet, the rings seem to disappear from time to time. This is due to the fact that only the edges of the rings are visible when tilted. According to modern theories, the rings were formed as a result of the destruction of Saturn's moons.

   

4. If you imagine that the Sun is the size of a front door, then Saturn will resemble a basketball. In this case, the Earth will be the size of an ordinary coin.

   

5. The planet is mainly composed of helium and hydrogen gases. It has almost no hard surface.

   

6. If you put Saturn in water, it can float like a ball.. This is possible because the density of the planet is 2 times less than that of water.

   

7. All rings have names that correspond to letters of the Latin alphabet. They received their names in the order in which they were discovered.

   

8. Scientists around the world are actively studying Saturn. To this day, 5 missions have visited there. The first spacecraft visited this site in 1979. Since 2004, the study of the features of the celestial body has been carried out using a spacecraft called Cassini.

   

9. 40% of all satellites in the Universe revolve around Saturn. Among them there are both regular and irregular satellites. The orbits of the first ones are quite close to the planet, the others are located far away. They were captured recently. The moon Phoebus is located farthest from the planet.

   

10. Astronomers hypothesize that Saturn influenced the structure of the solar system. Due to the action of its gravity, the planet managed to throw Uranus and Neptune aside. However, for now this is just an assumption for which evidence needs to be found.

    

11. The pressure of the atmosphere of the planet Saturn exceeds that of Earth by 3 million times. On this gas planet, hydrogen is compressed into a liquid and then a solid state. If a person gets there, he will immediately be flattened by atmospheric pressure.

    

12. The planet is characterized by northern lights. It was captured by a spacecraft near the North Pole. A similar phenomenon could not be detected on any other planet.

    

13. Bad weather is constantly raging on Saturn. A strong wind blows there, which at times turns into a hurricane. Local hurricanes are similar in their course to terrestrial ones. Only they appear much more often. During hurricanes, giant spots that resemble funnels form. They can be seen from space.

    

14. Saturn is considered the most beautiful planet. The beauty of Saturn is ensured by the delicate blue color of the surface and bright rings. By the way, you can see this celestial body from Earth without any optical instruments. The brightest star in the sky is Saturn.

    

15. The planet emits 2 times more energy than it receives from the Sun. Due to its remote location, very little solar energy reaches Saturn. It is 91 times less than what the Earth receives. At the bottom of the planet's clouds, the air temperature is only 150K. According to scientific hypotheses, the source of internal energy can be the energy released as a result of gravitational differentiation of helium.