SATURN

Saturn has long been known for its rings. If a person were to recite all they knew of other planets, it would be a sure bet that the knowledge of Saturn's rings would be in the top five. But Saturn is a fascinating world in itself, so like Jupiter in some ways, but so unlike it in others.

Considered one of the gas giant planets, Saturn is smaller and colder than Jupiter. The planet has a diameter of 120,660 km, about 9.5 times the diameter of the earth. Saturn takes 29.5 years to orbit the Sun at a distance of 1427 million km.

Like Jupiter, Saturn has a fast rotation rate, turning on its axis once every 10 hours 14 minutes. This has the effect of flattening Saturn at its poles, though not as noticeably as Jupiter.

Constellations

The Solar System