Saturn 101 | National Geographic — Transcript

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1. 0:01- [Instructor] With its gold color and stunning rings,
2. 0:04Saturn is quite a planetary gem.
3. 0:09Saturn is the second-largest of the eight planets,
4. 0:12and it is about ten times as wide as Earth.
5. 0:17Despite its size, Saturn is actually the lightest planet.
6. 0:21It is predominantly made of the gases hydrogen and helium.
7. 0:25And because of its particular gaseous composition,
8. 0:28Saturn is the only planet in the solar system
9. 0:31that's less dense than water.
10. 0:34If the planet were placed on an enormous ocean,
11. 0:37it would be able to float.
12. 0:39Saturn's gaseous makeup also means
13. 0:41that it has no true surface.
14. 0:44At its center, the planet has a dense core
15. 0:46of water, ice, and rocky material,
16. 0:49but it has no actual landmass.
17. 0:53Instead, it's mostly made of gases, liquids,
18. 0:57and yellow ammonia crystals
19. 0:59that swirl around the planet,
20. 1:01creating golden clouds and storms.
21. 1:05The largest storm on Saturn is at its north pole.
22. 1:09It's over twice the size of Earth
23. 1:11and shaped in a near-perfect hexagon.
24. 1:14Each of the six sides is believed
25. 1:16to be the result of jet streams,
26. 1:18which all encircle a massive hurricane.
27. 1:22Because of Saturn's inhospitable environment,
28. 1:25the planet cannot support life -
29. 1:27but some of its moons might.
30. 1:31Saturn has more than 50 confirmed moons,
31. 1:35and each varies in size and terrain.
32. 1:38Enceladus, one of Saturn's smallest moons,
33. 1:41is covered in ice and only about
34. 1:43as wide as the state of Pennsylvania.
35. 1:47Titan, Saturn's largest moon,
36. 1:49is nearly as wide as Canada.
37. 1:52Titan is also the only moon in the solar system
38. 1:55with clouds and a dense atmosphere.
39. 1:58Both Titan and Enceladus have underground oceans
40. 2:01that would make them potentially capable of sustaining life.
41. 2:08Saturn's moons may also play a role in shaping
42. 2:11the planet's signature feature: its rings.
43. 2:15Saturn's ring system is the largest
44. 2:17and most complex in the entire solar system.
45. 2:20The rings are made of icy and rocky remnants
46. 2:23from comets, asteroids, and moons.
47. 2:25The particles range in size
48. 2:27from being as small as dust to as big as mountains.
49. 2:32The ring system is divided into seven groups of rings.
50. 2:35Altogether, they are as wide as four-and-a-half Earths,
51. 2:40but only about two-thirds of a mile thick.
52. 2:44How the rings are able to stay on track and intact
53. 2:47has to do with Saturn's smallest moons.
54. 2:50Called Shepherding moons, these tiny satellites
55. 2:53orbit between the rings,
56. 2:55and they seem to use their gravity
57. 2:57to shape the ring material into circular paths.
58. 3:02Saturn has fascinated scientists
59. 3:04and amateur astronomers alike for thousands of years.
60. 3:08The ancient Greeks and Romans,
61. 3:10who named the planet after their god of agriculture,
62. 3:13believed it was a star.
63. 3:16It wasn't until the 17th century,
64. 3:18after the telescope was invented,
65. 3:20that scientists like Galileo Galilei,
66. 3:23Christiaan Huygens, and Giovanni Cassini
67. 3:26could take a much closer look.
68. 3:29Only then was Saturn's planetary status discovered
69. 3:32and, ultimately, its many moons and brilliant rings.
70. 3:37Because of its planet-like moons,
71. 3:40lightweight composition,
72. 3:41and dazzling ring system,
73. 3:43Saturn continues to mesmerize us to this day.