The Exploration of Space

Saturn and its Moons

Space Words

• Planet

• Moon

• Sun

• Star

• Solar System

• Orbit

There are nine planets in our solar system.

The planets orbit around the sun.

Galileo GalileiItalian Astronomer

1564-1642

1610: Saturn rings sighted by Galileo GalileiAlthough he saw the rings first, Galileo did not know what they were. They appeared to him as ears or lobes on either side of the planet.

1612: Galileo sees that rings seem to vanishhttp://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Cassini-Huygens/SEMSP6HHZTD_0.html

Christiaan HuygensDutch Mathematician

and Astronomer 1629-1625

He created a new way to make a better telescope lens.

1655: He solved mystery of vanishing rings and discovered Titan, Saturn's largest moon.

1656: He patented the first pendulum clock http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Huygens.html

Giovanni Domenico Cassini

French-Italian Astronomer

1625-1712

Cassini discovered Saturn's four other major moons: Iapetus, Rhea, Tethys, and Dione, and discovered that Saturn's rings are split largely into two parts by a narrow gap -- known since as the "Cassini Division.“http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Cassini.html

Cassini Mission to Saturn

Photo: ESA

Cassini spacecraftand Huygens Probe

Photos: ESA

Titan IVB/Centaurgetting ready for takeoff

October 1997

Photo: ESA

The Cassini-Huygens voyage through the Solar System

Illustration: ESA

Io and Jupiter

Photo: ESA

Photo: ESA

Rhea

Photo: ESA

Dione and Saturn Photo: ESA

Phoebe

Photo: ESA

Titan

Titan in ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths. It was taken by the Cassini-Huygens Imaging Science Subsystem on 26 October 2004, and is constructed from four images acquired through different colour filters. The image scale of this picture is 6.4 kilometres per pixel.

Photo: ESA

Huygen’s landing site

This picture was taken during descent to the landing site, that indicates flow around bright 'islands'. The areas below and above the bright islands may be at different

elevations.

Photo: ESA

river channel and ridge area on Titan

Photo: ESA

14 January 2005, Titan

This picture gives an indication of the actual color

of the surface. Initially thought to be rocks or ice blocks, the

two rock-like objects just below the middle of the image are about 15 centimetres (left)

and 4 centimetres (centre) across respectively, at a

distance of about 85 centimetres from Huygens.

Facts about Saturn

Orbital period (Saturnian year) 29.46 Earth yearsSaturnian day 10 hours 39 minsCore temperature Approx. 12 000K (11 700°C)Cloud-top temperature 150K (-139 °C)Average density 0.7 g per cubic cm (0.7 times that of water)Atmosphere 96% hydrogen and 4% helium with traces of water, methane and ammoniMoons 31