5 Surprises From Saturn

Last September, NASA sent a spacecraft called Cassini (kah-SEE-nee) plunging into Saturn’s atmosphere. It burned up in a blaze of glory—just as scientists planned.

Cassini explored Saturn, its moons, and its rings for 13 years. Its discoveries challenged our thinking about where life might exist beyond Earth. But Cassini started running low on rocket fuel, so its mission had to come to a fiery end.

In honor of Cassini, let’s take a look at five of its most exciting discoveries! 

Last September, NASA sent a spacecraft called Cassini (kah-SEE-nee) plunging into Saturn’s atmosphere. It burned up in a blaze of glory—just as scientists planned.

Cassini explored Saturn, its moons, and its rings for 13 years. Its discoveries challenged our thinking about where life might exist beyond Earth. But Cassini started running low on rocket fuel, so its mission had to come to a fiery end.

In honor of Cassini, let’s take a look at five of its most exciting discoveries!

From a distance, Saturn’s moon Enceladus looks like a frozen ice ball. But Cassini found a world that might host life!

An ocean of salty water hides underneath Enceladus’s ice shell. Water is a key ingredient for life. Enceladus also has hydrothermal vents. These vents release heat and chemicals from deep within the moon. On Earth, tiny organisms called microbes thrive on chemicals from hydrothermal vents. Scientists are planning a mission to Enceladus to see if they can find microbes living in the vents.

From a distance, Saturn’s moon Enceladus looks like a frozen ice ball. But Cassini found a world that might host life!

An ocean of salty water hides underneath Enceladus’s ice shell. Water is a key ingredient for life. Enceladus also has hydrothermal vents. These vents release heat and chemicals from deep within the moon. On Earth, tiny organisms called microbes thrive on chemicals from hydrothermal vents. Scientists are planning a mission to Enceladus to see if they can find microbes living in the vents.

It’s easy to recognize Saturn by its rings. Although the rings look solid from afar, they’re made up of pieces of dust, rock, and ice. Scientists used to think the rings were about the height of a two-story building. But Cassini found that some parts of the rings are as tall as the Rocky Mountains!

It’s easy to recognize Saturn by its rings. Although the rings look solid from afar, they’re made up of pieces of dust, rock, and ice. Scientists used to think the rings were about the height of a two-story building. But Cassini found that some parts of the rings are as tall as the Rocky Mountains!

From space, Saturn’s largest moon looks like a fuzzy orange ball. Known as Titan, it has a thick atmosphere that gives it this appearance. Its atmosphere also makes the moon difficult for scientists to study. In 2004, a probe named Huygens (HOY-genz) separated from Cassini and landed on Titan.

When scientists finally saw Titan’s surface, they found an Earth-like landscape with canyons and seas. But the seas aren’t filled with water. They’re made of a substance called liquid methane. Can life exist in methane instead of water? It’s too early to tell, but scientists say maybe! More exploration is needed to find out for sure.

From space, Saturn’s largest moon looks like a fuzzy orange ball. Known as Titan, it has a thick atmosphere that gives it this appearance. Its atmosphere also makes the moon difficult for scientists to study. In 2004, a probe named Huygens (HOY-genz) separated from Cassini and landed on Titan.

When scientists finally saw Titan’s surface, they found an Earth-like landscape with canyons and seas. But the seas aren’t filled with water. They’re made of a substance called liquid methane. Can life exist in methane instead of water? It’s too early to tell, but scientists say maybe! More exploration is needed to find out for sure. 

On Saturn, the weather is calm for 20 to 30 years until a huge storm brews. Cassini had front-row seats to one of the most powerful storms scientists have ever seen. It started in late 2010 and lasted 267 days. The storm was so big, it wrapped around the entire planet!

On Saturn, the weather is calm for 20 to 30 years until a huge storm brews. Cassini had front-row seats to one of the most powerful storms scientists have ever seen. It started in late 2010 and lasted 267 days. The storm was so big, it wrapped around the entire planet!

Can you imagine looking at the sky and counting not one but 62 moons? That’s the number of moons that astronomers have found orbiting Saturn! Cassini discovered six new moons around the planet. These moons are very small. That’s why no one had spotted them until Cassini came along. 

Can you imagine looking at the sky and counting not one but 62 moons? That’s the number of moons that astronomers have found orbiting Saturn! Cassini discovered six new moons around the planet. These moons are very small. That’s why no one had spotted them until Cassini came along. 

Enceladus is the sixth-largest moon of Saturn. Make a T-chart of all the factor pairs for the number 6.

Enceladus is the sixth-largest moon of Saturn. Make a T-chart of all the factor pairs for the number 6.

After Huygens detached from Cassini, it landed on Titan 21 days later. List all the factor pairs for 21. 

After Huygens detached from Cassini, it landed on Titan 21 days later. List all the factor pairs for 21. 

The storm on Saturn was 8 times the size of Earth’s surface. Explain how the following numbers relate to 8: 1, 2, 4, 8. Use a T-chart or model drawing in your answer. 

The storm on Saturn was 8 times the size of Earth’s surface. Explain how the following numbers relate to 8: 1, 2, 4, 8. Use a T-chart or model drawing in your answer. 

Saturn has 62 moons (that we know of). List all the factor pairs for 62. 

Saturn has 62 moons (that we know of). List all the factor pairs for 62.