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Saturn

The little moon has drawn comparisons to ravioli, empanadas, and hamburger.

Cool Finds

One of Saturn’s Moons is Making Astronomers Hungry

New images of the tiny moon are drawing comparisons to a ravioli, empanadas, walnuts, hamburgers…nom, nom, nom

Ask Smithsonian 2017

Why Is Pennsylvania Ave D.C.’s Main Thoroughfare and More Questions From Our Readers

Your questions answered by our experts

This image shows a region in Saturn's outer B ring. NASA's Cassini spacecraft viewed this area at a level of detail twice as high as it had ever been observed before. And from this view, it is clear that there are still finer details to uncover. Researchers have yet to determine what generated the rich structure seen in this view, but they hope detailed images like this will help them unravel the mystery.

Cool Finds

NASA Releases Spectacular New Snapshots of Saturn’s Rings

Millions of moonlets appear to be tucked inside the debris that famously circles the planet

An artist’s conception of the Lucy spacecraft flying by the Trojan asteroid Eurybates (left) and Psyche, the first mission to a metal asteroid (right).

Trending Today

NASA Just Announced Two New Missions, But Shelved Others

Though the new missions have exciting prospects, some scientists aren’t thrilled by the decision

This collage of images from NASA's Cassini spacecraft shows Saturn's northern hemisphere and rings as viewed with four different spectral filters. Each filter is sensitive to different wavelengths of light and reveals clouds and hazes at different altitudes.

New Research

Check Out New Pictures of Saturn From Cassini’s Latest Orbit

New images of the ringed planet herald the spacecraft’s demise

Cassini crosses Saturn's F ring once on each of its 20 Ring-Grazing Orbits, shown here in tan and lasting from late November 2016 to April 2017. Blue represents the extended solstice mission orbits, which precede the ring-grazing phase.

Trending Today

In Its Final Hurrah, Cassini Will Swoop Past Saturn’s Rings

The craft will take one last look at the ringed planet before diving into its depths

Two natural color images from NASA's Cassini spacecraft show the changing appearance of Saturn's north polar region between 2012 and 2016.

New Research

The Swirling Storm Above Saturn’s North Pole Changed Colors

The years-long shift may be a sign of changing seasons

Cameras captured snowy craters scattered across the moon's north side.

Cool Finds

Stunning New Views of Enceladus, Saturn’s 6th-Largest Moon

A new flyby has revealed a spidery network of cracks crisscrossing its northern pole

The leading hemisphere of Dione shows tectonic faults running across its surface, along with craters, in false color, which was produced by an image in the ultraviolet, green, and infrared wavelengths taken by the Cassini Orbiter. The subtle variations in color may be caused by fine ice particles.

Trending Today

Today, Cassini Will Say Goodbye to Saturn’s Moon Dione

It’s curtains for the NASA mission’s close relationship with the satellite

The Cassini spacecraft took this image of three of Saturn's moons, Rhea, Mimas and Titan.

Cool Finds

See Three of Saturn’s Moons Pose in a Family Photo

While in orbit, Cassini captures a stunning shot of three crescents

Colorized radar images from the Cassini spacecraft show some of the many lakes on Titan

New Research

Lakes on Saturn’s Moon are Really Sinkholes Filled With Liquid Methane and Ethane

Strange and changeable lakes might form just as certain water-filled lakes do on Earth

Saturn’s largest ring as spotted by NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope in 2009

New Research

Saturn’s Rings Extend Farther Than Thought — Nearly 4 Million Miles From the Planet

The outermost ring is dark and dusty

None

Ask Smithsonian: How Many Rings Does Saturn Have?

The age, origin and purpose of Saturn’s rings have mystified scientists since the days of Galileo

A mosaic of Enceladus collected by Cassini showing deep fissures or sulci

New Research

A Hint That a Saturnian Moon Could Have Hydrothermal Vents—And Support Life

Grains of silica from Saturn’s magnetosphere likely came from Enceladus and may mean the moon has hydrothermal vents

Ten years ago this week, the Huygens probe gave scientists a first look at the icy surface beneath the haze of Saturn's moon Titan.

Best Space Photos of the Week

Best Space Photos of the Week: From Solar Flares to Saturn’s Moons

A spitting sun, a well-loved lake and a happy accident on Mars star in this week’s best space images

The giant Herschel Crater gives Saturn’s moon Mimas an ominous look.

A Mysterious Force is Acting on Saturn’s “Death Star” Moon

Tiny, cratered Mimas is wobbling way more than it should be, hinting that it might contain either an oddly shaped core or a subsurface ocean

New Research

Saturn Is Making (And Destroying) Mini-Moons All The Time

Saturn’s F ring is a little moon factory

New Research

Titan’s Ocean Might Be as Salty as the Dead Sea

New data from the Cassini mission shows that the ocean under Titan’s ice shell is likely very salty

The bright spot on the lower left of Saturn's A ring is not Peggy, but rather the visible sign of Peggy's gravitation distortion of the ring structure.

New Research

Saturn’s Rings May Be Shredding One of Its Moons to Bits

Or giving birth to a new one

Enceladus as seen by Cassini.

New Research

Saturn’s Icy Moon Enceladus May Have a Giant Liquid Water Lake

New proof that Enceladus is a watery world

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