Saturn is the second-largest and sixth planet from Sun. Saturn is a unique planet in our solar system due to the presence of a beautiful icy ring. It has a total of seven rings with several gaps and divisions between them. Saturn is not the only planet that has a ring, but its ring part is made of chunks of ice and rocks, but no one has a spectacular and complicated ring like Saturn.
Like Jupiter, Saturn is also a gas giant planet, mostly made up of hydrogen and helium. Saturn is a gas giant planet because it does not have a solid surface like Earth, but it can have a solid core, and also having atmosphere made up of hydrogen and helium. Saturn has a total of 82 moons in which 53 moons are known and 29 moons awaiting confirmation for discovery. Saturn can not support life but some moons have a condition that might support life.
In the 1600s, when Galileo Galilei first saw Saturn, Galileo thought it was three planets or planets with handle. Now that handle turns out to be a ring of Saturn.
Structure and Surface of Saturn
* Like Jupiter, Saturn is also a gas giant planet, mostly made up of hydrogen and helium.
* Saturn is a gas giant planet because it does not have a solid surface like Earth, but it can have a solid core.
* Its atmosphere is thick and mainly made up of hydrogen and helium.
* It has a total of seven rings with several gaps and divisions between them.
* Saturn is not the only planet that has a ring, but its ring part is made of chunks of ice and rocks, but no one has a spectacular and complicated ring like Saturn.
* Saturn does not has a solid surface like earth but has an inner core that is made up of metal like iron and nickel surrounded by rocky material and other compounds solidify by inner intense pressure and heat.
* Like Jupiter core, Saturn’s inner core is enveloped by liquid metallic hydrogen inside a layer of liquid hydrogen.
* It’s unbelievable, That density of Saturn is less than Water. This heavy gas giant planet can float in water.
* The Saturn surface is not as true as Earth.
* Its surface is mostly covered with gases.
* If a spacecraft lands on Saturn, it will not get a solid surface to land and will go into the crush of the planet, where the spacecraft will change from high pressure and heat to vapor.
Atmosphere of Saturn
* At the equator region in the upper atmosphere of Saturn, wind increase up to 1,600 feet per second ( 500 meters per second ).
* Saturn is covered with faint stripes, jet streams, and Strome like a cloud.
* Six-sided jet stream present at the north pole of Saturn.
* The six-sided jet stream is hexagonal shaped, which is first seen from Voyager I spacecraft and more closely observed by Cassin spacecraft launched by NASA.
Moons of Saturn
Saturn has a total of 82 moons in which 53 moons are known and 29 moons awaiting confirmation for discovery. Saturn can not support life but some moons have a condition that might support life. Some moons are:- Titan, Enceladus.
Life on Saturn
Saturn environment is not a suitable good for life. Saturn can not support life but some moons have a condition that might support life. Titan and Enceladus may support life due to the presence of the internal ocean.
Some quick facts about Saturn
* Day:- 10.7 hours
* Year - 29.4 earth year ( 10,756 earth year )
* Radius - 36,183.7 miles | 58,232 kilometers
* Planet type - Gas giant
* Moons - 82 moons ( 53 conformed and 29 provisional )
* In the 1600s, when Galileo Galilei first saw Saturn.
* Axis tilted - 26.73 degrees ( Earth - 23.5 degrees )
* Sunlight takes time to reach Saturn - 80 minutes
* Distance from Sun - 886 million miles | 1.4 billion kilometers
* Missin has visited Saturn - pioneer 11, and Voyagers 1and 2 flew, From 2014 to 2017 Cassini orbit Saturn 294 times.
* In 2017, the Cassini spacecraft was vaporized in a Saturn atmosphere.
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