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The following is a summary of the rings of Saturn.
| Name | Distance* | Width | Thickness | Mass | Albedo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | 67,000 km | 7,500 km | ? | ? | ? |
| C | 74,500 km | 17,500 km | ? | 1.1x10^18 kg | 0.25 |
| Maxwell Gap | 87,500 km | 270 km | |||
| B | 92,000 km | 25,500 km | 0.1-1 km | 2.8x10^19 kg | 0.65 |
| Cassini Div | 117,500 km | 4,700 km | ? | 5.7x10^17 kg | 0.30 |
| A | 122,200 km | 14,600 km | 0.1-1 km | 6.2x10^18 kg | 0.60 |
| Encke gap | 133,570 km | 325 km | |||
| Keeler gap | 136,530 km | 35 km | |||
| F | 140,210 km | 30-500 km | ? | ? | ? |
| G | 165,800 km | 8,000 km | 100-1000 km | 6-23x10^6 kg | ? |
| E | 180,000 km | 300,000 km | 1,000 km | ? | ? |
*The distance is measured from the planet center to the start of the ring.
Saturn has 18 officially recognized and named satellites. In addition, there are other unconfirmed satellites. One circles in the orbit of Dione, a second is located between the orbits of Tethys and Dione, and a third is located between Dione and Rhea. The unconfirmed satellites were found in Voyager photographs, but were not confirmed by more than one sighting. Recently, the Hubble Space Telescope imaged four objects that might be new moons.
Several generalizations can be made about the satellites of Saturn. Only Titan has an appreciable atmosphere. Most of the satellites have a synchronous rotation. The exceptions are Hyperion, which has a chaotic orbit, and Phoebe. Saturn has a regular system of satellites. That is, the satellites have nearly circular orbits and lie in the equatorial plane. The two exceptions are Iapetus and Phoebe. All of the satellites have a density of < 2 gm/cm3. This indicates they are composed of 30 to 40% rock and 60 to 70% water ice. Most of the satellites reflect 60 to 90% of the light that strikes them. The outer four satellites reflect less than this and Phoebe reflects only 2% of the light that strikes it.
The following table summarizes the radius, mass, distance from the planet center, discoverer and the date of discovery of each of the confirmed satellites of Saturn:
| Moon | # | Radius (km) |
Mass (kg) |
Distance (km) |
Discoverer | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pan | XVIII | 9.655 | ? | 133,583 | M. Showalter | 1990 |
| Atlas | XV | 20x15 | ? | 137,640 | R. Terrile | 1980 |
| Prometheus | XVI | 72.5x42.5x32.5 | 2.7e+17 | 139,350 | S. Collins | 1980 |
| Pandora | XVII | 57x42x31 | 2.2e+17 | 141,700 | S. Collins | 1980 |
| Epimetheus | XI | 72x54x49 | 5.6e+17 | 151,422 | R. Walker | 1966 |
| Janus | X | 98x96x75 | 2.01e+18 | 151,472 | A. Dollfus | 1966 |
| Mimas | I | 196 | 3.80e+19 | 185,520 | W. Herschel | 1789 |
| Enceladus | II | 250 | 8.40e+19 | 238,020 | W. Herschel | 1789 |
| Tethys | III | 530 | 7.55e+20 | 294,660 | G. Cassini | 1684 |
| Telesto | XIII | 17x14x13 | ? | 294,660 | B. Smith | 1980 |
| Calypso | XIV | 17x11x11 | ? | 294,660 | B. Smith | 1980 |
| Dione | IV | 560 | 1.05e+21 | 377,400 | G. Cassini | 1684 |
| Helene | XII | 18x16x15 | ? | 377,400 | Laques-Lecacheux | 1980 |
| Rhea | V | 765 | 2.49e+21 | 527,040 | G. Cassini | 1672 |
| Titan | VI | 2,575 | 1.35e+23 | 1,221,850 | C. Huygens | 1655 |
| Hyperion | VII | 205x130x110 | 1.77e+19 | 1,481,000 | W. Bond | 1848 |
| Iapetus | VIII | 730 | 1.88e+21 | 3,561,300 | G. Cassini | 1671 |
| Phoebe | IX | 110 | 4.0e+18 | 12,952,000 | W. Pickering | 1898 |
| Possible New Satellites of Saturn | ||||||
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Copyright � 1998 Michael Ammar.
