Saturn's Moon

Saturn's Moon: Astronomers discovered 128 new moons orbiting Saturn, increasing its total count to 274 moons.

• About Saturn's Moons: The International Astronomical Union has formally recognized the 128 new moons.

o The new moons are assigned numerical designations and will later be named after Gallic, Norse, and Canadian Inuit gods.

o Most of the moons fall into the Norse cluster, prompting astronomers to find more Viking deities for naming.

o Identified using the “shift and stack” technique, which enhances faint objects by tracking their motion.

o All 128 new moons are irregular moons, potato-shaped objects just a few kilometers across.

o The discovery was made using the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope, with further observations in 2023.

• About Titan – Saturn’s Largest Moon: Titan is the only moon in the solar system with a thick atmosphere.

o It has an Earth-like liquid cycle with rivers, lakes, and seas on its surface.

o Larger than Mercury, Titan is the second-largest moon in the solar system, just 2% smaller than Jupiter’s Ganymede.

• About: Saturn is the second-largest planet in the solar system after Jupiter. It is a gas giant composed mainly of hydrogen and helium.

o Distinctive rings made of ice, rock, and dust.

o Average orbital distance: 1.4 billion km from the Sun.

o Rotation period: 10.7 hours, but it takes 29.5 Earth years to orbit the Sun.

o Moons and rings influence the planet’s gravitational and atmospheric dynamics.