Saturn has so many moons? Almost all planets have their own moons. Of the eight planets in our solar system, only two of the planets have no moons, they are Mercury and Venus. While the earth we inhabit has one moon, mars has two moons and Saturn is the planet with the most moons and is known as the King of the Moons. If so, how many moons circle Saturn? It turns out that Saturn has 82 moons, this is the highest number of the eight planets in our solar system. While Jupiter has 79 moons, Saturn is the only planet in our solar system that has the most moons. This planet, which is composed of gas, is not only famous for its rings, but also for its enormous number of moons.
The Moons of Saturn
Saturn has many moons and some of them are the largest moons in the solar system. The largest moon is like Titan, which is bigger than the planet Mercury. Meanwhile, other moons are smaller than our earth’s moon. However, Saturn’s moons have unique features. So it is very interesting to examine some of the largest moons belonging to the planet Saturn. These are Titan, Rhea, Iapetus, Dione, and Tethys.
Let’s just start with the first big moon, Titan.
1. Titan
It is the second largest moon in the solar system and the largest moon for Saturn. There is an interesting thing, where Titan is a celestial object that is known to have a stable liquid surface besides the earth. Titan is a moon with a size 50% larger than the planet Mercury, its diameter is 5.149 km / 3.199 mi, and a radius of 2,574 km / 1,599 mi.
Saturn’s moon has been discovered since 1655, the discoverer of the moon Titan is the Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens, and it is the first month to be discovered as the moon Saturn, then only other moons have been found.
From what materials was Titan formed? Titan is in the form of rock and ice, and it has a dense atmosphere, it is the only Saturn moon with an atmosphere that is dense, thick like the atmosphere of Venus. Most of it is formed from nitrogen and it also has the same climate as Earth. That is why, Titan has a physical form almost the same as the earth. It has rivers, deltas, seas, lakes, sand dunes. The liquid consists mostly of ethane and liquid methane. While the temperature ranges between 93.7 K / and 179.5oC. Imagine, of course there are no living things like humans. The temperature was so high that there could be no living things in it.
2. Rhea
Saturn’s next moon is Rhea. After Titan, Rhea is the next largest Saturn month. While in the solar system, it is the ninth largest month. The size of the moon Rhea is larger than the planets Makemake and Ceres.
The diameter of the Moon of Rhea is 1,527 km / 948 mi and a radius of 763 km / 474 mi. So, it is twice as small as our moon.
Also see: Distance Between Earth and Moon
Apart from that, another unique fact about Rhea is that it is the smallest celestial body in our solar system. Rhea was discovered in 1672 by the Italian astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini. The lowest temperature in this month called Rhea was recorded at 53 K, while the highest was 99 K.
It is a celestial body made up of ice and rock. About 25% consists of rock and 75% consists of ice. Some experts believe that the rhea does not have a core below its surface.
3. Iapetus
It is the 11th largest moon on Saturn and the 3rd largest moon on Saturn. It is larger than the dwarf planets Makemake and Ceres.
Iapetus has a diameter slightly below Rhea, it is 1,469 km / 912 mi, with a radius of 734 km / 456 mi. The discovery of this moon Saturn in 1671, was also discovered by an Italian astronomer named G.D. Cassini. The surface is unusual or different between the two parts, making this moon easy to recognize.
Iapetus moon orbits Saturn from afar and it is one of the farthest moons orbiting Saturn. The tilt of the orbit is 15.47o. Its unique appearance has led to the Lapetus being also called the solar system ying-yang.
4. Dione
The fourth month is Dione. This is one of the largest Saturn moons. He was also discovered by an Italian astronomer named G.D. Cassini in 1684 ago. In terms of its large size, it is said to be the fifteenth largest moon in the solar system. The diameter is only 1,122 km / 697 mi with a radius of 561 km / 348 mi.
It is physically small, but it is a very dense and heavy moon compared to other small moons in Saturn’s circle system. It consists of two-thirds water ice and the remaining silicate rock in the core. Said to be similar to Enceladus, he probably has a salty sea.
Dione is larger than the dwarf planets and is thought to have been active in the past.
5. Tethys
The Tethys is the second largest moon in Saturn’s circle. This moon was discovered by G. D. Cassino who is an Italian astronomer, in 1684. The size of Tethys is bigger than the dwarf planet, Ceres. Its diameter is 1,062 km / 659 mi, and a radius of 531 km/329 mi.
This moon is formed from rocks and mostly from water ice. In addition to the two materials, it was also mentioned that there was dark material on their surface that was not identified. The Tethys surface consists of many craters. One of the largest craters is the impact crater called Odysseus, its diameter is 400 km / 248 mi only, with the largest graben, its width is 100 km/62, is called Ithaca Chasma, and its length is 2,000 km / 1,242 mi long.
This moon named Tethys has been surrounded by several spacecraft, including Pioneer 11, in 1979, Voyager 1, in 1980, Voyager 2, in 1981, and has been surrounded several times by the Cassini space probe satellite, this is around the year 2004 and 2017.