Figure 25.24: This infrared image taken of Saturn’s north pole shows that the clouds are in
a hexagon (six-sided) shape. ( 11 )
Saturn’s Moons
As of 2008, over 60 moons have been identified around Saturn. Most of them are very small.
Some are even found within the rings. In a sense, all the particles in the rings are like
little moons, too, because they orbit around Saturn. Only seven of Saturn’s moons are large
enough for gravity to have made them spherical, and all but one are smaller than Earth’s
moon.
Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, is about one and a half times the size of Earth’s Moon and
is also larger than the planet Mercury. Figure25.25compares the size of Titan to Earth.
Scientists are very interested in Titan because it has an atmosphere that is similar to what
Earth’s atmosphere might have been like before life developed on Earth. Titan may have
a layer of liquid water under a layer of ice on the surface. Scientists now believe there are
also lakes on the surface of Titan, but these lakes contain liquid methane (CH 4 ) and ethane
(C 2 H 6 )insteadof water! Methaneand ethanearecompounds foundinnatural gas, a mixture
of gases found naturally on Earth and often used as fuel.