Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in our solar system. Adorned with a dazzling system of icy rings, Saturn is unique among the planets. It is the only planet to have rings, but none are as spectacular or as complex as Saturn’s.
Saturn’s size and distance
With a radius of 36,183.7 miles (58,232 kilometers), Saturn is 9 times wider than Earth.
- From an average distance of 886 million miles (1.4 billion kilometers) to Saturn, it takes sunlight 80 minutes to travel from the Sun to Saturn.
Moons
Saturn is home to a vast array of intriguing and unique worlds. From the haze-shrouded surface of Titan to crater-riddled Phoebe, each of Saturn’s moons tells another piece of the story surrounding the Saturn system.
- Currently Saturn has 53 confirmed moons with nine additional provisional moons awaiting confirmation.
Orbit and Rotation
Saturn has the second-shortest day in the solar system. One day on Saturn takes only 10.7 hours (the time it takes for Saturn to rotate or spin around once), and Saturn makes a complete orbit around the Sun in about 29.4 Earth years (10,756 Earth days).
Atmosphere
Saturn is blanketed with clouds that appear as faint stripes, jet streams and storms. The planet is many different shades of yellow, brown and grey. Winds in the upper atmosphere reach 1,600 feet per second (500 meters per second) in the equatorial region.
- In contrast, the strongest hurricane-force winds on Earth top out at about 360 feet/second (110 meters/second).
Formation
Saturn took shape when the rest of the solar system formed about 4.5 billion years ago, when gravity pulled swirling gas and dust in to form this gas giant.
- About 4 billion Years ago, Saturn settled into its current position in the outer solar system, where it is the sixth planet from the Sun.
Potential for Life
Saturn’s environment is not conducive to life as we know it. The temperatures, pressures, and materials that characterize this planet are most likely too extreme and volatile for organisms to adapt to.
Magnetosphere
Saturn, the rings, and many of the satellites lie totally within Saturn’s magnetosphere, the region of space in which the behavior of electrically charged particles is influenced more by Saturn’s magnetic field than by the solar wind.
- Aurorae occur when charged particles spiral into a planet’s atmosphere along magnetic field lines. On Earth, these charged particles come from the sun’s atmosphere.
Structure
Saturn is made mostly of hydrogen and helium, with a dense core of metals like iron and nickel surrounded by rocky material and other compounds solidified by the intense pressure and heat.
- It is enveloped by liquid metallic hydrogen inside a layer of liquid hydrogen-similar to Jupiter’s core but considerably smaller.
Surface
Saturn doesn’t have a true surface. The planet is mostly swirling gases and liquids deeper down.
