DISTANCE
FROM SUN: 887 million miles
REVOLUTION AROUND SUN: almost 30 years
ROTATION: just over 10 hours
DIAMETER: 74,600 miles
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE: -290°F
SATELLITES: at least 18
Saturn, the ringed planet, is the second largest planet in our solar system. It is the sixth planet from the Sun.
Saturn has the most spectacular set of rings in the solar system. The brightest rings can be seen from the Earth with binoculars. They are made up of lumps of ice. These rings are common to these gas giants.
Saturn is big, but it spins very rapidly. One complete rotation takes just a little more than 10 hours. It spins so fast that it flattens out the top and the bottom of the planet. The fast spin also causes Saturn to bulge at its equator. It is also striped, like Jupiter, due to violent winds which can spin around at speeds over 1000 miles per hour.
Saturn is the least dense of all the planets. In fact, it is less dense that water! A piece of the planet Saturn would float in water.
Questions:
1. True or False: Saturn is the only planet with rings.
2. Why wouldn't you wear a hat on a visit to Saturn?