Saturn – Facts and Information about the Planet Saturn

An animated image of the small ejected camera tumbling away from Tianwen-1.

Space photos: The most amazing images this week!

By Doris Elin Urrutia

See the best photos on Space.com this week.

The snowcapped mountains of Pluto's Pigafetta Montes and Elcano Montes and the Alps on Earth are seen side by side in this view.

The top space stories of the week!

By Doris Elin Urrutia

These are the top space stories this week from Space.com.

An artist's depiction of the Enceladus Orbilander mission concept.

If we want to find life on Saturn's moon Enceladus, we need to rule out Earthly hitchhikers

By Meghan Bartels

Want to find life in an exotic corner of the solar system like Saturn's icy moon Enceladus?

As November begins, Mercury will be in the western evening sky and swinging sunward towards inferior conjunction on November 11, when the speedy planet will transit the sun. The transit will be visible in whole or in part from westernmost Russia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, South America, North America (except for the extreme north), most of the Pacific Ocean, and New Zealand. After mid-month, Mercury will return to view with an excellent morning apparition for Northern Hemisphere observers, but a poor one for the Southern Hemisphere. The planet will reach peak visibility at greatest western elongation on November 28. Viewed in a telescope during mornings in November, Mercury's disk will diminish in apparent size and wax in illuminated phase from a thin crescent to a 68% full. Over the same period, the planet will brighten. The old crescent moon will pass north of Mercury on November 24-25.

The brightest planets in October's night sky: How to see them (and when)

By Joe Rao

Here's how to see planets visible in October's night sky.

Where to next in the outer solar system? Scientists have big ideas to explore icy moons and more.

By Meghan Bartels

If you had a few billion dollars and some of the most talented space scientists and engineers in the world, where would you go?

In these detailed infrared images of Saturn's icy moon Enceladus, reddish areas indicate fresh ice that has been deposited on the surface.

Saturn's ocean moon Enceladus has fresh ice in unexpected place

By Elizabeth Howell

Saturn's geyser-spewing moon Enceladus may be even more active than scientists had thought.

Researchers have proposed sending a submarine to explore the huge Saturn moon Titan's frigid seas of methane and ethane.

Submarine could explore seas of huge Saturn moon Titan

By Mike Wall

Researchers have been crafting a concept mission that would send a submarine to Saturn's huge moon Titan, which sports lakes and seas of liquid hydrocarbons on its frigid surface.

The Hubble Space Telescope captured this image of Saturn during its northern hemisphere summer on July 4, 2020.

Behold! Saturn has no summertime blues in this amazing Hubble telescope photo

By Meghan Bartels

Can't get enough of summer? Saturn's northern hemisphere is also in the throes of the season, and the Hubble Space Telescope has captured a stunning new photo of the ringed planet to celebrate.

A close-up view of Jupiter, taken one week after the planet reached opposition in June 2019, reveals detailed cloud bands — and Jupiter's moon Europa!

See Jupiter and Saturn at their brightest this week

By Joe Rao

This week, Jupiter and Saturn appear at their very best, with Jupiter having just arrived at opposition July 14 and Saturn to reach its own opposition July 20.

The full moon, Jupiter and Saturn as seen on the evening of July 5, 2020 from Seattle.

Celestial fireworks: See Jupiter and Saturn with a 'Buck Moon' lunar eclipse this Fourth of July weekend

By Joe Rao

Nature has its own fireworks in store this Independence Day weekend with a stunning full moon ornamented by two shining planets.

This false-color image from NASA's Cassini spacecraft shows Titan in ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths.

Mystery solved: Odd bright patches on Saturn moon Titan are dry lake beds

By Mike Wall

The features had puzzled scientists for more than a decade.

NASA's Cassini spacecraft captured this natural-color view of Saturn's north pole at a distance of approximately 611,000 miles (984,000 kilometers) away, on July 22, 2013.

Subsurface vortexes could be behind Saturn's mysterious hexagon

By Doris Elin Urrutia

Two researchers investigated the dynamics of Saturn's churning atmosphere to figure out what sorts of planetary fluid dynamics are creating its mystifying hexagon.

Saturn and its moon Titan, as seen by NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

Titan is drifting away from Saturn 100 times faster than we thought

By Chelsea Gohd

Saturn's moon Titan is zooming away from its ringed parent 100 times faster than scientists expected.

Jupiter, Saturn and the crescent moon will form a triangle in the night sky overnight on June 8-9, 2020. The trio will rise in the southeast shortly before midnight and fade from view when dawn breaks.

Jupiter and Saturn form a triangle with the moon tonight. Here's how to see it.

By Elizabeth Howell

Look up late tonight (June 8) and early tomorrow morning to see Jupiter and Saturn form a triangle with Earth's moon.

This Cassini image reveals the northern hemisphere of Saturn as it nears its summer solstice.

The rings of Saturn are 'ringing' like a bell

By Nola Taylor Redd

Saturn’s ringing rings are revealing insights about the planet’s interior.

This sky map shows Jupiter and Saturn on the morning of their close approach on May 18, 2020, as seen from New York City at 2:30 a.m. local time.

See Jupiter and Saturn snuggle up in the predawn sky this week

By Elizabeth Howell

The two giant planets of the solar system, Jupiter and Saturn, will snuggle up in the predawn sky this week, offering spectacular views for night owls and early risers.

A high-res, colorful view of Saturn's Hexagon.

Saturn's weird hexagon has 'sandwich-like' layers of hazy mists

By Chelsea Gohd

There's an extensive system of haze layers in the bizarre hexagon on Saturn, a new study has found.

Data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft is still helping scientists to explore Saturn, years after the spacecraft "died."

Dead Cassini spacecraft could solve mystery of Saturn's hot atmosphere

By Elizabeth Howell

A spacecraft that died in 2017 is still providing insights about Saturn, the planet it studied up close for 13 years.

Titan's surface is difficult to see through the thick haze of its atmosphere. Scientists suspect the moon may have dust devils, just like Earth and Mars.

Titan twisters? 'Dust devils' may be swirling on Saturn's largest moon

By Chelsea Gohd

Dust devils could be swirling around on Saturn's huge moon Titan, a new study reports.

Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will all dance near the moon this week.

You can see the moon shine with Jupiter, Saturn and Mars before dawn this week. Here's how.

By Joe Rao

The predawn hours this week will sparkle as Jupiter, Saturn and Mars dance around the moon on consecutive mornings.