Exploring SaturnActivities

Tom HootenDirector, Hudnall Planetarium

NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador

The Current Mission

Cassini – Huygens

1997-2008

Launched: 7 Year cruise on

October 15, 1997 VVEJGA trajectory

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Cassini SpacecraftSpacecraft Specs

Height: 6.8 m (22 ft)

Diameter: 4 m (13 ft)

Mass: 2500 kg (2.8 tons)

(fueled): 5600 kg (6 tons)

Power: 700 Watts at SOI

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SOI

Tour

Overview4 year Prime Mission

– 75 orbits

– 45 targeted Titan flybys

– 9 targeted icy satellite flybys

5 Science Objectives

– Titan

– Saturn

– Rings

– Icy Satellites

– Magnetosphere

The Planet

Saturn’s Clouds

Saturn Educator’s

Guide

What is a system?solar system

school system

computer system

stereo system

digestive system

telephone system

air-conditioning system

cable-tv system

Some things all systems have:

• Parts

• Interactions between parts

• Inputs

• Outputs

How is Saturn a system?

• Parts

– planet

– rings

– moons

How is Saturn a system?

• Interactions between parts

– moon-ring

– moon-moon

– moon-planet

How is Saturn a system?

• Inputs

– sunlight, gravity

How is Saturn a system?

• Outputs

– reflected sunlight, radio waves

Let’s look at the rings more closely.

Building a Saturn System Diagram

1

• Saturn's rings are not solid, but are

composed of many chunks of ice and

rock that range in size from a grain of

sand to as big as a house. The names

of the rings in the order they appear from

the cloud tops of Saturn outward toward

the moon Titan are:

_____ _____ _____ _____ _____

_____ _____

2

• Jean-Dominique Cassini is the person

who discovered a division (gap) in

Saturn's rings in 1659. The _____ and

_____ rings are on either side of the

Cassini Division.

3

• The narrowest rings by far are the _____

ring and the _____ ring.

4

• Which of Saturn's rings am I pointing to

now? _____

5

• There are _____ (a number) moons

orbiting Saturn at distances closer to the

planet than the G ring.

6

• There are _____ (a number) moons

orbiting Saturn at distances farther from

the planet than the G ring. (HINT: Don't

forget to count the moons that are farther

away than Titan.)

7

• The farthest moon from Saturn is actually

orbiting very slowly in the opposite

direction from all the other moons and

ring particles. It may be an asteroid

captured by Saturn's gravity. This moon

is called _________.

8

• _______________ is the force that holds

the moons and the ring particles in orbit

around Saturn.

9

• The widest ring of Saturn has a moon called Enceladus orbiting within it. Enceladus has ice volcanoes that erupt and send particles up so high that they escape the moon and supply the ______ ring with small ice particles.

10

• The _______ ring has a gap near its

outer edge caused by the tiny moon

named Pan.

11

• The narrow ________ ring is held

together ("shepherded") by the gravity of

the moons Prometheus and Pandora,

which orbit on either side of the ring.

12

• The gravitational forces between the tiny

moons Janus and Epimetheus cause

them to trade orbits with one another.

Both of these tiny moons are between

the ______ ring and the _____ ring.

• 13. Measure the scaled diameter of

the Earth in centimeters: ______.

• 14. Measure the scaled radius of

Saturn in centimeters: ______.

• 15. Measure the scaled distance to

the center of the moon Tethys:

______.

16

• Which is larger the distance from the

Earth to the moon or the distance

from the center of Saturn to the

outer edge of the E ring?_________

17

• Which is wider the A ring or the C

ring?_____

18

• Which is larger the Earth's moon

or Titan?_____

19

• Which is wider the Cassini Division

or the Enke Gap?_____

The Last Two Questions

• Did you have fun today?

• What did you learn today?

Gravitationally Assisted Flyby

Newton’s Cannon

Gravitational Effect

Gravity Assist

Gravity Assist Simulator

1. Fold 1” lip on bottom of sheet of paper.

2. Tape straw to top paper.

3. Drop ball bearing through straw and mark trajectory.

4. Place magnet near trajectory.

5. Notice how ball bearing’s trajectory is deviated.

6. Moving the magnet will create differing degrees of deviation.

More Resources

• Astronomy Teacher’s Workshop

– June 29th (register through ESC 7)

• Hudnall Planetarium

http://planetarium.tjc.edu

• Saturn Educators Guide & More

http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov