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Moons of Saturn

Natural satellites of the planet Saturn From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Moons of Saturn

The moons of Saturn are numerous and diverse, ranging from tiny moonlets only tens of meters across to the enormous Titan, which is larger than the planet Mercury. There are 274 moons with confirmed orbits, the most of any planet in the Solar System.[1] This number does not include the many thousands of moonlets embedded within Saturn's dense rings, nor hundreds of possible kilometer-sized distant moons that have been observed on single occasions.[2][3][4] Three moons are particularly notable. Titan is the second-largest moon in the Solar System (after Jupiter's Ganymede), with a nitrogen-rich Earth-like atmosphere and a landscape featuring river networks and hydrocarbon lakes.[5] Enceladus emits jets of ice from its south-polar region and is covered in a deep layer of snow.[6] Iapetus has contrasting black and white hemispheres as well as an extensive ridge of equatorial mountains among the tallest in the solar system.

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An annotated picture of Saturn's many moons captured by the Cassini spacecraft. Shown in the image are Dione, Enceladus, Epimetheus, Prometheus, Mimas, Rhea, Janus, Tethys and Titan.
Diagram showing the highly clustered orbits of Saturn's 250 known outer irregular moons as of 2025. Majority of these irregular moons orbit retrograde, or opposite to the direction of Saturn's rotation. The orbits of retrograde moons are colored red while the orbits of prograde moons are colored blue.

Twenty-four of the known moons are regular satellites; they have prograde orbits not greatly inclined to Saturn's equatorial plane,[7] with the exception of Iapetus which has a prograde but highly inclined orbit,[8][9] an unusual characteristic for a regular moon. They include the seven major satellites, four small moons that exist in a trojan orbit with larger moons, and five that act as shepherd moons, of which two are mutually co-orbital. Two tiny moons orbit inside of Saturn's B and G rings. The relatively large Hyperion is locked in an orbital resonance with Titan. The remaining regular moons orbit near the outer edges of the dense A Ring and the narrow F Ring, and between the major moons Mimas and Enceladus. The regular satellites are traditionally named after Titans and Titanesses or other figures associated with the mythological Saturn.

The remaining 250, with mean diameters ranging from 2 to 213 km (1 to 132 mi), orbit much farther from Saturn. They are irregular satellites, having high orbital inclinations and eccentricities mixed between prograde and retrograde. These moons are probably captured minor planets, or fragments from the collisional breakup of such bodies after they were captured, creating collisional families. The irregular satellites are classified by their orbital characteristics into the prograde Inuit and Gallic groups and the large retrograde Norse group, and their names are chosen from the corresponding mythologies (with the Gallic group corresponding to Celtic mythology). The sole exception is Phoebe, the largest irregular Saturnian moon, discovered at the end of the 19th century; it is part of the Norse group but named for a Greek Titaness.

The rings of Saturn are made up of objects ranging in size from microscopic to moonlets hundreds of meters across, each in its own orbit around Saturn.[10] Thus an absolute number of Saturnian moons cannot be given, because there is no consensus on a boundary between the countless small unnamed objects that form Saturn's ring system and the larger objects that have been named as moons. Over 150 moonlets embedded in the rings have been detected by the disturbance they create in the surrounding ring material, though this is thought to be only a small sample of the total population of such objects.[3]

As of March 2025, there are 211 designated moons that are still unnamed; all but one (the designated B-ring moonlet S/2009 S 1) are irregular. (There are many other undesignated ring moonlets.) If named, most of the irregulars will receive names from Gallic, Norse and Inuit mythology based on the orbital group of which they are a member.[11][12]

Discovery

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Perspective

Early observations

A large bright circle in the center is surrounded by small circles.
Saturn (overexposed) and the moons Iapetus, Titan, Dione, Hyperion, and Rhea viewed through a 12.5-inch telescope

Before the advent of telescopic photography, eight moons of Saturn were discovered by direct observation using optical telescopes. Saturn's largest moon, Titan, was discovered in 1655 by Christiaan Huygens using a 57-millimeter (2.2 in) objective lens[13] on a refracting telescope of his own design.[14] Tethys, Dione, Rhea and Iapetus (the "Sidera Lodoicea") were discovered between 1671 and 1684 by Giovanni Domenico Cassini.[15] Mimas and Enceladus were discovered in 1789 by William Herschel.[15] Hyperion was discovered in 1848 by W. C. Bond, G. P. Bond[16] and William Lassell.[17]

The use of long-exposure photographic plates made possible the discovery of additional moons. The first to be discovered in this manner, Phoebe, was found in 1899 by W. H. Pickering.[18] In 1966 the tenth satellite of Saturn was discovered by Audouin Dollfus, when the rings were observed edge-on near an equinox.[19] It was later named Janus. A few years later it was realized that all observations of 1966 could only be explained if another satellite had been present and that it had an orbit similar to that of Janus.[19] This object is now known as Epimetheus, the eleventh moon of Saturn. It shares the same orbit with Janus—the only known example of co-orbitals in the Solar System.[20] In 1980, three additional Saturnian moons were discovered from the ground and later confirmed by the Voyager probes. They are trojan moons of Dione (Helene) and Tethys (Telesto and Calypso).[20]

Observations by spacecraft

Five moons in a Cassini image: Rhea bisected in the far-right foreground, Mimas behind it, bright Enceladus above and beyond the rings, Pandora eclipsed by the F Ring, and Janus off to the left

The study of the outer planets has since been revolutionized by the use of uncrewed space probes. The arrival of the Voyager spacecraft at Saturn in 1980–1981 resulted in the discovery of three additional moons—Atlas, Prometheus and Pandora—bringing the total to 17.[20] In addition, Epimetheus was confirmed as distinct from Janus. In 1990, Pan was discovered in archival Voyager images.[20]

The Cassini mission,[21] which arrived at Saturn in July 2004, initially discovered three small inner moons: Methone and Pallene between Mimas and Enceladus, and the second trojan moon of Dione, Polydeuces. It also observed three suspected but unconfirmed moons in the F Ring.[22] In November 2004 Cassini scientists announced that the structure of Saturn's rings indicates the presence of several more moons orbiting within the rings, although only one, Daphnis, had been visually confirmed at the time.[23] In 2007 Anthe was announced.[24] In 2008 it was reported that Cassini observations of a depletion of energetic electrons in Saturn's magnetosphere near Rhea might be the signature of a tenuous ring system around Saturn's second largest moon.[25] In March 2009, Aegaeon, a moonlet within the G Ring, was announced.[26] In July of the same year, S/2009 S 1, the first moonlet within the B Ring, was observed.[27] In April 2014, the possible beginning of a new moon, within the A Ring, was reported.[28] (related image)

Outer moons

This image demonstrates the application of the shift-and-add technique to the detection of a faint moon of Saturn (S/2019 S 1; circled in red). While the moon is barely visible in an individual image (top panel), it can be seen better when many images of the moon are taken, stacked to the moon's motion and then added together (bottom panel)

Study of Saturn's moons has also been aided by advances in telescope instrumentation, primarily the introduction of digital charge-coupled devices which replaced photographic plates. For the 20th century, Phoebe stood alone among Saturn's known moons with its highly irregular orbit. Then in 2000, a team of astronomers led by Brett J. Gladman discovered twelve irregular moons of Saturn using various ground-based telescopes around the world.[29][30] The discovery of these irregular moons revealed orbital groupings within Saturn's irregular moon population, which provided the first insights into the collisional history of Saturn's irregular moons.[30]

In 2003, a team of astronomers including Scott Sheppard, David Jewitt, and Jan Kleyna began using the Subaru 8.2 m telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory to search for irregular moons around Saturn, and discovered Narvi.[30] Because of the Subaru telescope's very large aperture size alongside its camera's large field of view, it is capable of detecting extremely faint moons, hence Sheppard's team continued using the Subaru telescope for further moon searches.[30] In 2005, Sheppard's team announced the discovery of twelve more small outer moons from their Subaru observations.[31][32] Sheppard's team announced nine more irregular moons in 2006[33] and three more moons in 2007, where Tarqeq (S/2007 S 1) was announced in April 2007 and S/2007 S 2 and S/2007 S 3 were announced one month after.[34] No new irregular moons of Saturn were reported until 2019, when Sheppard's team identified twenty more irregular satellites of Saturn in archives of their 2004–2007 Subaru observations. This brought Saturn's moon count to 82, which resulted in Saturn overtaking Jupiter as the planet with the most known moons for the first time since 2000.[12][2]

In 2019, researchers Edward Ashton, Brett Gladman, and Matthew Beaudoin conducted a survey of Saturn's Hill sphere using the 3.6-meter Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) and discovered about 80 new Saturnian irregular moons, which were reported to the Minor Planet Center (MPC) for announcement.[4][35] Follow-up observations of these new moons took place over 2019–2021, eventually leading to S/2019 S 1 being announced in November 2021 and an additional 62 moons being announced from 3–16 May 2023.[36][37] These discoveries brought Saturn's total number of confirmed moons up to 145, making it the first planet known to have over 100 moons.[36][38] Yet another moon, S/2006 S 20, was announced on 23 May 2023, bringing Saturn's total count moons to 146.[37]

All of these new moons are small and faint, with diameters over 3 km (2 mi) and apparent magnitudes of 25–27.[4] These extremely dim moons could only been seen via the shift-and-add technique, where multiple long-exposure images are overlaid, shifted to follow the motion of Saturn in the sky, and then additively combined to bring out the signal of faint moons that follow Saturn in the sky.[4] The researchers found that the Saturnian irregular moon population is more abundant at smaller sizes, suggesting that they are likely fragments from a collision that occurred a few hundred million years ago. The researchers extrapolated that the true population of Saturnian irregular moons larger than 2.8 km (1.7 mi) in diameter amounts to 150±30, which is approximately three times as many Jovian irregular moons down to the same size. If this size distribution applies to even smaller diameters, Saturn would therefore intrinsically have more irregular moons than Jupiter.[4]

On 11 March 2025, 128 moons of Saturn were simultaneously announced by the MPC,[1] bringing the total number of confirmed moons to 274 and making it the first planet known to have over 200 moons.[39][40][41] These moons were found by Ashton, Gladman, Mike Alexandersen, and Jean-Marc Petit using the CFHT in 2023, as a continuation of their 2019–2021 survey for Saturnian irregular moons.[40] Ashton's team also searched for moons in CFHT images taken by a separate team consisting of Wesley Fraser, Samantha Lawler, and John Kavelaars,[1] who coincidentally imaged close to Saturn while searching for trans-Neptunian objects.[39] Like the other faint Saturnian irregular moons previously discovered by Ashton's team, these 128 moons were discovered via the shift-and-add technique on the CFHT images.[39][40] Many of these moons were traced back to earlier observations from 2004 to 2021, which corresponds to these moons' discovery dates.[1]

Discovery of outer planet moons

Naming

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The modern names for Saturnian moons were suggested by John Herschel in 1847.[15] He proposed to name them after mythological figures associated with the Roman god of agriculture and harvest, Saturn (equated to the Greek Cronus).[15] In particular, the then known seven satellites were named after Titans, Titanesses and Giants – brothers and sisters of Cronus.[18] The idea was similar to Simon Marius' scheme for naming moons of Jupiter after children of Zeus.[42]

As Saturn devoured his children, his family could not be assembled around him, so that the choice lay among his brothers and sisters, the Titans and Titanesses. The name Iapetus seemed indicated by the obscurity and remoteness of the exterior satellite, Titan by the superior size of the Huyghenian, while the three female appellations [Rhea, Dione, and Tethys] class together the three intermediate Cassinian satellites. The minute interior ones seemed appropriately characterized by a return to male appellations [Enceladus and Mimas] chosen from a younger and inferior (though still superhuman) brood. [Results of the Astronomical Observations made ... at the Cape of Good Hope, p. 415]

In 1848, Lassell proposed that the eighth satellite of Saturn be named Hyperion after another Titan.[17][42] When in the 20th century the names of Titans were exhausted, the moons were named after different characters of the Greco-Roman mythology or giants from other mythologies.[43] All the irregular moons (except Phoebe, discovered about a century before the others) are named after Inuit, and Gallic gods, and after Norse ice giants.[44] The International Astronomical Union's (IAU) Committee for Planetary System Nomenclature, which oversees the naming of Solar System moons, rules that Saturnian moons that are smaller than 3 km in diameter (absolute magnitude HV > 16.5)[a] should only be named if it is of scientific interest.[45]

Some asteroids share the same names as moons of Saturn: 55 Pandora, 106 Dione, 577 Rhea, 1809 Prometheus, 1810 Epimetheus, and 4450 Pan. In addition, three more asteroids would share the names of Saturnian moons but for spelling differences made permanent by the IAU: Calypso and asteroid 53 Kalypso; Helene and asteroid 101 Helena; and Gunnlod and asteroid 657 Gunlöd.

Physical characteristics

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Saturn's satellite system is very lopsided: one moon, Titan, comprises more than 96% of the mass in orbit around the planet. The six other planemo (ellipsoidal) moons constitute roughly 4% of the mass, and the remaining small moons, together with the rings, comprise only 0.04%.[b] Seven moons are large enough to have collapsed into a relaxed, ellipsoidal shape, though only one or two, Titan and possibly Rhea, are currently in hydrostatic equilibrium.

The relative masses of Saturn's moons. Values are ×1021 kg. With Titan in the comparison (left), Mimas and Enceladus are invisible at this scale. Even excluding Titan (right), Phoebe, Hyperion, the smaller moons and the rings are invisible.
More information Name, Diameter (km) ...
Saturn's major satellites, compared with the Moon
Name
Diameter
(km)[46]
Mass
(kg)[47]
Orbital radius
(km)[48]
Orbital period
(days)[48]
Mimas396
(0.12 D)
4×1019
(0.0005 M)
185,539
(0.48 a)
0.9
(0.03 T)
Enceladus504
(0.14 D)
1.1×1020
(0.002 M)
237,948
(0.62 a)
1.4
(0.05 T)
Tethys1,062
(0.30 D)
6.2×1020
(0.008 M)
294,619
(0.77 a)
1.9
(0.07 T)
Dione1,123
(0.32 D)
1.1×1021
(0.015 M)
377,396
(0.98 a)
2.7
(0.10 T)
Rhea1,527
(0.44 D)
2.3×1021
(0.03 M)
527,108
(1.37 a)
4.5
(0.20 T)
Titan5,149
(1.48 D)
(0.75 D)
1.35×1023
(1.80 M)
(0.21 M)
1,221,870
(3.18 a)
16
(0.60 T)
Iapetus1,470
(0.42 D)
1.8×1021
(0.025 M)
3,560,820
(9.26 a)
79
(2.90 T)
Close

Orbital groups

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Artist conception of Saturn, its rings and major icy moons—from Mimas to Rhea

Although the boundaries may be somewhat vague, Saturn's moons can be divided into nine groups according to their orbital characteristics. Many of them, such as Pan and Daphnis, orbit within Saturn's ring system and have orbital periods only slightly longer than the planet's rotation period.[49] The innermost moons and most regular satellites all have mean orbital inclinations ranging from less than a degree to about 1.5 degrees (except Iapetus, which has an inclination of 7.57 degrees) and small orbital eccentricities.[2] On the other hand, irregular satellites in the outermost regions of Saturn's moon system, in particular the Norse group, have orbital radii of millions of kilometers and orbital periods lasting several years. The moons of the Norse group also orbit in the opposite direction to Saturn's rotation.[44]

Inner moons

Ring moonlets

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Shepherd moon Daphnis creating waves in Saturn's A Ring
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Sequence of Cassini images of Aegaeon embedded within the bright arc of Saturn's G Ring

During late July 2009, a moonlet, S/2009 S 1, was discovered in the B Ring, 480 km from the outer edge of the ring, by the shadow it cast.[27] It is estimated to be 300 m in diameter. Unlike the A Ring moonlets (see below), it does not induce a 'propeller' feature, probably due to the density of the B Ring.[50]

In 2006, four tiny moonlets were found in Cassini images of the A Ring.[51] Before this discovery only two larger moons had been known within gaps in the A Ring: Pan and Daphnis. These are large enough to clear continuous gaps in the ring.[51] In contrast, a moonlet is only massive enough to clear two small—about 10 km across—partial gaps in the immediate vicinity of the moonlet itself creating a structure shaped like an airplane propeller.[52] The moonlets themselves are tiny, ranging from about 40 to 500 meters in diameter, and are too small to be seen directly.[3]

In 2007, the discovery of 150 more moonlets revealed that they (with the exception of two that have been seen outside the Encke gap) are confined to three narrow bands in the A Ring between 126,750 and 132,000 km from Saturn's center. Each band is about a thousand kilometers wide, which is less than 1% the width of Saturn's rings.[3] This region is relatively free from the disturbances caused by resonances with larger satellites,[3] although other areas of the A Ring without disturbances are apparently free of moonlets. The moonlets were probably formed from the breakup of a larger satellite.[52] It is estimated that the A Ring contains 7,000–8,000 propellers larger than 0.8 km in size and millions larger than 0.25 km.[3] In April 2014, NASA scientists reported the possible consolidation of a new moon within the A Ring, implying that Saturn's present moons may have formed in a similar process in the past when Saturn's ring system was much more massive.[28]

Similar moonlets may reside in the F Ring.[3] There, "jets" of material may be due to collisions, initiated by perturbations from the nearby small moon Prometheus, of these moonlets with the core of the F Ring. One of the largest F Ring moonlets may be the as-yet unconfirmed object S/2004 S 6. The F Ring also contains transient "fans" which are thought to result from even smaller moonlets, about 1 km in diameter, orbiting near the F Ring core.[53]

One recently discovered moon, Aegaeon, resides within the bright arc of G Ring and is trapped in the 7:6 mean-motion resonance with Mimas.[26] This means that it makes exactly seven revolutions around Saturn while Mimas makes exactly six. The moon is the largest among the population of bodies that are sources of dust in this ring.[54]

Ring shepherds

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Shepherd moon Prometheus disturbing Saturn's F Ring

Shepherd satellites are small moons that orbit within, or just beyond, a planet's ring system. They have the effect of sculpting the rings: giving them sharp edges, and creating gaps between them. Saturn's shepherd moons are Pan (Encke gap), Daphnis (Keeler gap), Prometheus (F Ring), Janus (A Ring), and Epimetheus (A Ring).[22][26] Atlas and Pandora orbit on the outside edge of the A Ring and F Ring respectively, and were long thought to be shepherds as well, until more recent studies began to indicate otherwise. These moons probably formed as a result of accretion of the friable ring material on preexisting denser cores. The cores with sizes from one-third to one-half the present-day moons may be themselves collisional shards formed when a parental satellite of the rings disintegrated.[49]

Janus and Epimetheus are co-orbital moons.[20] They are of similar size, with Janus being somewhat larger than Epimetheus.[49] They have orbits with less than a 100-kilometer difference in semi-major axis, close enough that they would collide if they attempted to pass each other. Instead of colliding, their gravitational interaction causes them to swap orbits every four years.[55]

Inner large

Saturn's inner large moons
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Enceladus ejecting icy particles from its south polar plumes
Thumb
Tethys and the rings of Saturn
Thumb
Color view of Dione in front of Saturn

The innermost large moons of Saturn orbit within its tenuous E Ring, along with three smaller moons of the Alkyonides group.

  • Mimas is the smallest and least massive of the inner round moons,[47] although its mass is sufficient to alter the orbit of Methone.[55] It is noticeably ovoid-shaped, having been made shorter at the poles and longer at the equator (by about 20 km) by the effects of Saturn's gravity.[56] Mimas has a large impact crater one-third its diameter, Herschel, situated on its leading hemisphere[57] Mimas has no known past or present geologic activity and its surface is dominated by impact craters, though it does have a water ocean 20–30 km beneath the surface.[58] The only tectonic features known are a few arcuate and linear troughs, which probably formed when Mimas was shattered by the Herschel impact.[57]
  • Enceladus is one of the smallest of Saturn's moons that is spherical in shape—only Mimas is smaller[56]—yet is the only small Saturnian moon that is currently endogenously active, and the smallest known body in the Solar System that is geologically active today.[59] Its surface is morphologically diverse; it includes ancient heavily cratered terrain as well as younger smooth areas with few impact craters. Many plains on Enceladus are fractured and intersected by systems of lineaments.[59] The area around its south pole was found by Cassini to be unusually warm and cut by a system of fractures about 130 km long called "tiger stripes", some of which emit jets of water vapor and dust.[59] These jets form a large plume off its south pole, which replenishes Saturn's E ring[59] and serves as the main source of ions in the magnetosphere of Saturn.[60] The gas and dust are released with a rate of more than 100 kg/s. Enceladus may have liquid water underneath the south-polar surface.[59] The source of the energy for this cryovolcanism is thought to be a 2:1 mean-motion resonance with Dione.[59] The pure ice on the surface makes Enceladus one of the brightest known objects in the Solar System—its geometrical albedo is more than 140%.[59]
  • Tethys is the third largest of Saturn's inner moons.[47] Its most prominent features are a large (400 km diameter) impact crater named Odysseus on its leading hemisphere and a vast canyon system named Ithaca Chasma extending at least 270° around Tethys.[57] The Ithaca Chasma is concentric with Odysseus, and these two features may be related. Tethys appears to have no current geological activity. A heavily cratered hilly terrain occupies the majority of its surface, while a smaller and smoother plains region lies on the hemisphere opposite to that of Odysseus.[57] The plains contain fewer craters and are apparently younger. A sharp boundary separates them from the cratered terrain. There is also a system of extensional troughs radiating away from Odysseus.[57] The density of Tethys (0.985 g/cm3) is less than that of water, indicating that it is made mainly of water ice with only a small fraction of rock.[46]
  • Dione is the second-largest inner moon of Saturn. It has a higher density than the geologically dead Rhea, the largest inner moon, but lower than that of active Enceladus.[56] While the majority of Dione's surface is heavily cratered old terrain, this moon is also covered with an extensive network of troughs and lineaments, indicating that in the past it had global tectonic activity.[61] The troughs and lineaments are especially prominent on the trailing hemisphere, where several intersecting sets of fractures form what is called "wispy terrain".[61] The cratered plains have a few large impact craters reaching 250 km in diameter.[57] Smooth plains with low impact-crater counts are also present on a small fraction of its surface.[62] They were probably tectonically resurfaced relatively later in the geological history of Dione. At two locations within smooth plains strange landforms (depressions) resembling oblong impact craters have been identified, both of which lie at the centers of radiating networks of cracks and troughs;[62] these features may be cryovolcanic in origin. Dione may be geologically active even now, although on a scale much smaller than the cryovolcanism of Enceladus. This follows from Cassini magnetic measurements that show Dione is a net source of plasma in the magnetosphere of Saturn, much like Enceladus.[62]

Alkyonides

Three small moons orbit between Mimas and Enceladus: Methone, Anthe, and Pallene. Named after the Alkyonides of Greek mythology, they are some of the smallest moons in the Saturn system. Anthe and Methone have very faint ring arcs along their orbits, whereas Pallene has a faint complete ring.[63] Of these three moons, only Methone has been photographed at close range, showing it to be egg-shaped with very few or no craters.[64]

Trojan moons

Trojan moons are a unique feature only known from the Saturnian system. A trojan body orbits at either the leading L4 or trailing L5 Lagrange point of a much larger object, such as a large moon or planet. Tethys has two trojan moons, Telesto (leading) and Calypso (trailing), and Dione also has two, Helene (leading) and Polydeuces (trailing).[22] Helene is by far the largest trojan moon,[56] while Polydeuces is the smallest and has the most chaotic orbit.[55] These moons are coated with dusty material that has smoothed out their surfaces.[65]

Outer large

Saturn's outer large moons
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Inktomi or "The Splat", a relatively young crater with prominent butterfly-shaped ejecta on Rhea's leading hemisphere
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Titan in front of Dione and the rings of Saturn
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Cassini image of Hyperion
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Equatorial ridge on Iapetus

These moons all orbit beyond the E Ring. They are:

  • Rhea is the second-largest of Saturn's moons. It is even slightly larger than Oberon, the second-largest moon of Uranus.[56] In 2005, Cassini detected a depletion of electrons in the plasma wake of Rhea, which forms when the co-rotating plasma of Saturn's magnetosphere is absorbed by the moon.[25] The depletion was hypothesized to be caused by the presence of dust-sized particles concentrated in a few faint equatorial rings.[25] Such a ring system would make Rhea the only moon in the Solar System known to have rings.[25] Subsequent targeted observations of the putative ring plane from several angles by Cassini's narrow-angle camera turned up no evidence of the expected ring material, leaving the origin of the plasma observations unresolved.[66]
Otherwise Rhea has rather a typical heavily cratered surface,[57] with the exceptions of a few large Dione-type fractures (wispy terrain) on the trailing hemisphere[67] and a very faint "line" of material at the equator that may have been deposited by material deorbiting from present or former rings.[68] Rhea also has two very large impact basins on its anti-Saturnian hemisphere, which are about 400 and 500 km across.[67] The first, Tirawa, is roughly comparable to the Odysseus basin on Tethys.[57] There is also a 48 km-diameter impact crater called Inktomi[69] at 112°W that is prominent because of an extended system of bright rays,[70] which may be one of the youngest craters on the inner moons of Saturn.[67] No evidence of any endogenic activity has been discovered on the surface of Rhea.[67]
The surface of Titan, which is difficult to observe due to persistent atmospheric haze, shows only a few impact craters and is probably very young.[72] It contains a pattern of light and dark regions, flow channels and possibly cryovolcanos.[72][75] Some dark regions are covered by longitudinal dune fields shaped by tidal winds, where sand is made of frozen water or hydrocarbons.[76] Titan is the only body in the Solar System beside Earth with bodies of liquid on its surface, in the form of methane–ethane lakes in Titan's north and south polar regions.[77] The largest lake, Kraken Mare, is larger than the Caspian Sea.[78] Like Europa and Ganymede, it is believed that Titan has a subsurface ocean made of water mixed with ammonia, which can erupt to the surface of the moon and lead to cryovolcanism.[75] On 2 July 2014, NASA reported the ocean inside Titan may be "as salty as the Earth's Dead Sea".[79][80]
  • Hyperion is Titan's nearest neighbor in the Saturn system. The two moons are locked in a 4:3 mean-motion resonance with each other, meaning that while Titan makes four revolutions around Saturn, Hyperion makes exactly three.[47] With an average diameter of about 270 km, Hyperion is smaller and lighter than Mimas.[81] It has an extremely irregular shape, and a very odd, tan-colored icy surface resembling a sponge, though its interior may be partially porous as well.[81] The average density of about 0.55 g/cm3[81] indicates that the porosity exceeds 40% even assuming it has a purely icy composition. The surface of Hyperion is covered with numerous impact craters—those with diameters 2–10 km are especially abundant.[81] It is the only moon besides the small moons of Pluto known to have a chaotic rotation, which means Hyperion has no well-defined poles or equator. While on short timescales the satellite approximately rotates around its long axis at a rate of 72–75° per day, on longer timescales its axis of rotation (spin vector) wanders chaotically across the sky.[81] This makes the rotational behavior of Hyperion essentially unpredictable.[82]
  • Iapetus is the third-largest of Saturn's moons.[56] Orbiting the planet at 3.5 million km, it is by far the most distant of Saturn's large moons, and also has the largest orbital inclination, at 15.47°.[48] Iapetus has long been known for its unusual two-toned surface; its leading hemisphere is pitch-black and its trailing hemisphere is almost as bright as fresh snow.[83] Cassini images showed that the dark material is confined to a large near-equatorial area on the leading hemisphere called Cassini Regio, which extends approximately from 40°N to 40°S.[83] The pole regions of Iapetus are as bright as its trailing hemisphere. Cassini also discovered a 20 km tall equatorial ridge, which spans nearly the moon's entire equator.[83] Otherwise both dark and bright surfaces of Iapetus are old and heavily cratered. The images revealed at least four large impact basins with diameters from 380 to 550 km and numerous smaller impact craters.[83] No evidence of any endogenic activity has been discovered.[83]
A clue to the origin of the dark material covering part of Iapetus's starkly dichromatic surface may have been found in 2009, when NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope discovered a vast, nearly invisible disk around Saturn, just inside the orbit of the moon Phoebe the Phoebe ring.[84] Scientists believe that the disk originates from dust and ice particles kicked up by impacts on Phoebe. Because the disk particles, like Phoebe itself, orbit in the opposite direction to Iapetus, Iapetus collides with them as they drift in the direction of Saturn, darkening its leading hemisphere slightly.[84] Once a difference in albedo, and hence in average temperature, was established between different regions of Iapetus, a thermal runaway process of water ice sublimation from warmer regions and deposition of water vapor onto colder regions ensued. Iapetus's present two-toned appearance results from the contrast between the bright, primarily ice-coated areas and regions of dark lag, the residue left behind after the loss of surface ice.[85][86]

Irregular

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Orbits and positions of Saturn's 250 irregular moons as of March 2025. Prograde orbits are colored blue while retrograde orbits are colored red. Saturn's outermost regular moons, Titan, Hyperion, and Iapetus, are also shown with turquoise orbits.

Irregular moons are small satellites with distant, inclined, and frequently retrograde orbits, believed to have been acquired by the parent planet through a capture process. They often occur as collisional families or groups.[30] The precise size and albedo of many of the irregular moons are not known because they are too small to be resolved by telescopes on Earth and in space, so their sizes are estimated from their brightness by assuming a dark surface or low albedo of around 6% (albedo of Phoebe) or less.[29] The irregular moons generally have featureless visible and near infrared spectra dominated by water absorption bands.[30] They are typically gray (spectrally neutral) or moderately red in color—similar to C-type, P-type, or D-type asteroids,[44] though they are much less red than Kuiper belt objects.[30][c]

Inuit

The Inuit group includes 36 prograde outer moons that are similar enough in their distances from the planet (190–300 radii of Saturn), their orbital inclinations (45–50°) and their colors that they can be considered a group.[29][44] The Inuit group is further split into three distinct subgroups at different semi-major axes, and are named after their respective largest members. Ordered by increasing semi-major axis, these subgroups are the Kiviuq subgroup (188 Saturn radii), Paaliaq (249 Saturn radii), and the Siarnaq subgroup (297 Saturn radii).[87][88][89] It is unknown whether all of these subgroups of the Inuit group share a common origin.[88]

The Kiviuq group includes 20 members, with the only named members being Ijiraq and the group's largest member and namesake Kiviuq. Kiviuq has a diameter of about 17 km and has a highly elongated shape, which may indicate it is a contact binary.[90] The Siarnaq group includes 15 members, with the only named members being Tarqeq and the group's namesake Siarnaq.[89] Siarnaq is the largest member of its subgroup and the entire Inuit group, with an estimated diameter of about 39 km.[91] The moons of the Kiviuq and Siarnaq subgroups are tightly clustered in semi-major axis and inclination with respect to their namesake moon, which makes them distinct collisional families.[88][39] In contrast to Kiviuq and Siarnaq, Paaliaq (diameter ~25 km) does not have an associated subgroup.[88][87]

Gallic

The Gallic group includes 17 prograde outer moons that are similar in their orbital inclination (35–40°), their orbital eccentricity, and their color that they can be considered a group.[29][44] The named members of the Gallic group are Albiorix, Bebhionn, Erriapus, and Tarvos.[89] The largest of these moons is Albiorix with an estimated diameter of about 29 km.[91] The Gallic group may be divided into the Albiorix subgroup, which consists of 16 moons with semi-major axes between 200–330 radii of Saturn, and the outlier moon S/2004 S 24 which has a lower eccentricity and a much more distant semi-major axis of ~400 Saturn radii.[89][88] S/2004 S 24 may not be directly related to the Gallic group, although it is possible that it could have formed as a fragment of a Albiorix subgroup member that was collisionally disrupted when it was at its farthest distance from Saturn in its elliptical orbit.[88]

Norse

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Phoebe, Saturn's largest irregular moon

All 197 retrograde outer moons of Saturn are broadly classified into the Norse group.[29][44] Only 31 moons of the Norse group have been named: Aegir, Angrboda, Alvaldi, Beli, Bergelmir, Bestla, Eggther, Farbauti, Fenrir, Fornjot, Geirrod, Gerd, Greip, Gridr, Gunnlod, Hati, Hyrrokkin, Jarnsaxa, Kari, Loge, Mundilfari, Narvi, Phoebe, Skathi, Skoll, Skrymir, Surtur, Suttungr, Thiazzi, Thrymr, and Ymir.[89]

Although the Norse group does not show obvious clustering in orbital elements, researchers led by Edward Ashton have proposed splitting the Norse group into four different subgroups by inclination.[88] These subgroups still have a broad range of orbital semi-major axes, inclinations, and eccentricities, and may not necessarily have an impact origin.[88]

  • The Phoebe subgroup consists of moons between inclinations 172.5° and 180° and is named after Phoebe,[88] by far the largest irregular moon of Saturn with a diameter of 213±1.4 km.[30] It has a retrograde orbit and rotates on its axis every 9.3 hours.[92] Phoebe was the first moon of Saturn to be studied in detail by Cassini, in June 2004; during this encounter Cassini was able to map nearly 90% of the moon's surface. Phoebe has a nearly spherical shape and a relatively high density of about 1.6 g/cm3.[30] Cassini images revealed a dark surface scarred by numerous impacts—there are about 130 craters with diameters exceeding 10 km. Such impacts may have ejected fragments of Phoebe into orbit around Saturn—two of these may be S/2006 S 20 and S/2006 S 9, whose orbits are similar to Phoebe.[87][93][94] Spectroscopic measurement showed that the surface is made of water ice, carbon dioxide, phyllosilicates, organics and possibly iron-bearing minerals.[30] Phoebe is believed to be a captured centaur that originated in the Kuiper belt.[30] It also serves as a source of material for the largest known ring of Saturn, which darkens the leading hemisphere of Iapetus (see above).[84]
  • The Mundilfari subgroup consists of moons between inclinations 157° and 172.5° and is the most populated of the four Norse subgroups proposed by Ashton and collaborators.[88] Named after its largest member Mundilfari (diameter ~7 km), this subgroup is dominated by tiny moons smaller than 4 km in diameter, which suggests they were formed by a relatively recent collisional event that destroyed a progenitor moon at least 100 million years ago.[88][39] Ashton and collaborators proposed that this progenitor moon of the Mundifari subgroup would have orbited Saturn at a semi-major axis of ~19.5 million km (~320 Saturn radii), inclination ~165°, and eccentricity ~0.28.[88] The collision that destroyed this progenitor moon would have to eject its fragments at a speed of at least 200 m/s, and subsequent collisions of its fragments may further disperse their orbits to produce the broad orbital distribution of the Mundilfari group observed today.[88]
  • The Kari subgroup consists of moons between inclinations 151° and 157° and appears mostly concentrated around the orbit of its namesake and largest member Kari (diameter ~6 km) with a semi-major axis range between 0.14–0.16 au (21–24 million km) from Saturn.[88] This tight clustering may be a collisional family.[88] There are several other moons in the Kari subgroup's inclination range that have semi-major axes less than the aforementioned range, and thus may not be related to the proposed collisional family.[88][39]
  • The remaining Norse group moons with inclinations below 151° are sparse in number and are assigned to the low-inclination subgroup by Ashton and collaborators.[88] Of the moons of the low-inclination subgroup, Narvi and S/2019 S 11 have the most similar orbits to each other, which suggests these two moons share an origin.[88]

List

Summarize
Perspective
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Orbital diagram of the orbital inclination and orbital distances for Saturn's rings and moon system at various scales. Notable moons, moon groups, and rings are individually labeled. Open the image for full resolution.

Confirmed

The Saturnian moons are listed here by orbital period (or semi-major axis), from shortest to longest. Moons massive enough for their surfaces to have collapsed into a spheroid are highlighted in bold and marked with a blue background, while the irregular moons are listed in red, orange, green, and gray background. The orbits and mean distances of the irregular moons are strongly variable over short timescales due to frequent planetary and solar perturbations, so the orbital elements of irregular moons listed here are averaged over a 5,000-year numerical integration by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. These may sometimes strongly differ from the osculating orbital elements provided by other sources.[89][95] Otherwise, recently-discovered irregular moons without published proper elements are temporarily listed here with inaccurate osculating orbital elements that are italicized to distinguish them from other irregular moons with proper orbital elements. The mean orbital elements are based on a reference epoch of 1 January 2000,[89] whereas the osculating orbital elements of the 128 newly-discovered moons are based on a reference epoch of 5 May 2025.[1]

Key
  Small regular moons (17) Major moons (7) Inuit group (36) Gallic group (17) Norse group (197)
More information Label, Name ...
Label
[d]
Name Pronunciation Image Abs.
magn.

[e]
Diameter
(km)
[f]
Mass
(×1015 kg)
[g]
Semi-major
axis

(km)
[89]
Orbital period (d)
[89][h]
Inclination
(°)
[89][i]
Eccentricity
[89]
Position
[j]
Discovery
year

[101]
Year announced Discoverer
[43][101]
S/2009 S 1
Thumb
0.30.00000711169000.471500.00.000outer B Ring20092009Cassini[27]
(moonlets)
Thumb
0.04–0.4<0.0000171300000.550.00.000Three 1,000 km bands within A Ring[3]2006Cassini
XVIII Pan/ˈpæn/
Thumb
9.228.2
(35×28×21)
4.30133600+0.575050.00.000in Encke Division19901990Showalter
XXXV Daphnis/ˈdæfnəs/
Thumb
7.6
(9.8×8.4×5.6)
0.068136500+0.594080.00.000in Keeler Gap20052005Cassini
XV Atlas/ˈætləs/
Thumb
8.530.2
(41×35×19)
5.490137700+0.604600.00.00119801980Voyager 1
XVI Prometheus/prˈmθiəs/
Thumb
6.786.2
(137×81×56)
159.72139400+0.615880.00.002F Ring shepherd19801980Voyager 1
XVII Pandora/pænˈdɔːrə/
Thumb
6.581.4
(104×81×64)
135.7141700+0.631370.00.00419801980Voyager 1
XI Epimetheus/ɛpəˈmθiəs/
Thumb
5.5116.2
(130×114×106)
525.607151400+0.697010.30.020co-orbital with Janus19661967Fountain & Larson
X Janus/ˈnəs/Thumb4.5179
(203×185×153)
1893.88151500+0.697350.20.007co-orbital with Epimetheus19661967Dollfus
LIII Aegaeon/ˈɒn/
Thumb
0.66
(1.4×0.5×0.4)
0.0000782167500+0.808120.00.000G Ring moonlet20082009Cassini
IMimas/ˈmməs/
Thumb
3.2396.4
(416×393×381)
37509.4186000+0.942421.60.020 17891789Herschel
XXXII Methone/məˈθn/
Thumb
2.9
(4.0×2.6×2.4)
0.00392194700+1.009550.00.002Alkyonides20042004Cassini
XLIX Anthe/ˈænθ/
Thumb
1.80.0015198100+1.038900.00.002Alkyonides20072007Cassini
XXXIII Pallene/pəˈln/
Thumb
4.44
(5.8×4.2×3.7)
0.023212300+1.156060.20.004Alkyonides20042004Cassini
IIEnceladus/ɛnˈsɛlədəs/
Thumb
2.1504.2
(513×503×497)
108031.8238400+1.370220.00.005Generates the E ring17891789Herschel
IIITethys/ˈtθəs/
Thumb
0.71062.2
(1077×1057×1053)
617495.9295000+1.887801.10.001 16841684Cassini
XIII Telesto/təˈlɛst/
Thumb
8.724.8
(33×23×19)
3.9295000+1.887801.20.001leading Tethys trojan (L4)19801980Smith et al.
XIV Calypso/kəˈlɪps/
Thumb
9.221.4
(29×19×13)
1.8295000+1.887801.50.001trailing Tethys trojan (L5)19801980Pascu et al.
XII Helene/ˈhɛlən/
Thumb
8.235.2
(45×39×27)
7.1377600+2.736920.20.007leading Dione trojan (L4)19801980Laques & Lecacheux
XXXIV Polydeuces/pɒliˈdjsz/
Thumb
2.6
(3.5×3.1×2.7)
0.0075377600+2.736920.20.019trailing Dione trojan (L5)20042004Cassini
IVDione/dˈn/
Thumb
0.81122.8
(1128×1123×1119)
1095486.8377700+2.736920.00.002 16841684Cassini
VRhea/ˈrə/
Thumb
0.11527.6
(1530×1526×1525)
2306485.4527200+4.517500.30.001 16721673Cassini
VITitan/ˈttən/
Thumb
–1.35149.46
(5149×5149×5150)
134518035.41221900+15.94540.30.029 16551656Huygens
VII Hyperion/hˈpɪəriən/
Thumb
4.8270.0
(360×266×205)
5551.01481500+21.27670.60.105in 4:3 resonance with Titan18481848Bond & Lassell
VIIIIapetus/ˈæpətəs/
Thumb
1.21468.6
(1491×1491×1424)
1805659.13561700+79.33107.60.028 16711673Cassini
S/2019 S 1
Thumb
15.350.1111245400+445.5149.50.384Inuit group (Kiviuq)20192021Ashton et al.
XXIVKiviuq/ˈkɪviək/
Thumb
12.7173.611307500+449.1348.00.275Inuit group (Kiviuq)20002000Gladman et al.
S/2005 S 415.750.06511324500+450.2248.00.315Inuit group (Kiviuq)20052023Sheppard et al.
S/2020 S 115.940.03411338600+451.1048.20.337Inuit group (Kiviuq)20202023Ashton et al.
XXIIIjiraq/ˈɪrɒk/
Thumb
13.3131.811344600+451.4349.20.293Inuit group (Kiviuq)20002000Gladman et al.
IXPhoebe/ˈfbi/
Thumb
6.7213.0
(219×217×204)
8312.312929400−550.30175.20.164Norse group (Phoebe)18981899Pickering
S/2006 S 2015.750.06513193700−567.27173.10.206Norse group (Phoebe)20062023Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 916.530.01414406600−647.89173.00.248Norse group (Phoebe)20062023Sheppard et al.
XXPaaliaq/ˈpɑːliɒk/
Thumb
11.7251414997900+686.9448.50.378Inuit group[k]20002000Gladman et al.
XXVIISkathi/ˈskɑːði/
Thumb
14.480.3815575400−728.09151.60.281Norse group (low-inclination)20002000Gladman et al.
S/2007 S 516.240.03415835700−746.88158.40.104Norse group (Mundilfari)20072023Sheppard et al.
S/2007 S 716.240.03415931600−754.29169.20.217Norse group (Mundilfari)20072023Sheppard et al.
S/2007 S 215.650.06515939100−754.91174.00.232Norse group (Phoebe)20072007Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 3715.940.03415956500−755.63158.20.448Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 4716.340.03416050700−762.49160.90.291Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 4016.340.03416075600−764.60169.20.297Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
XXVIAlbiorix/ˌælbiˈɒrɪks/
Thumb
11.228.61216329100+783.4636.80.482Gallic group20002000Holman
S/2019 S 216.530.01416560200−799.85173.30.279Norse group (Phoebe)20192023Ashton et al.
XXXVIIBebhionn/ˈbvɪn/
Thumb
15.060.1817027200+834.8538.50.459Gallic group20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2007 S 816.040.03417049000+836.9036.20.490Gallic group20072023Sheppard et al.
LXS/2004 S 2915.850.06517064100+837.7838.60.485Gallic group20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 316.240.03417077100−837.74166.90.249Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 716.830.01417394000−861.25161.40.500Norse group (Mundilfari)20202023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 3115.650.06517497200+866.0948.10.159Inuit group (Siarnaq)20042019Sheppard et al.
XXVIIIErriapus/ɛriˈæpəs/
Thumb
13.7100.9517507000+871.0937.10.476Gallic group20002000Gladman et al.
XLVIISkoll/ˈskɒl/
Thumb
15.450.1117623700−878.38159.40.463Norse group (Mundilfari)20062006Sheppard et al.
LIITarqeq/ˈtɑːrkk/
Thumb
14.870.1817751000+884.9948.70.143Inuit group (Siarnaq)20072007Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 1416.340.03417853200+893.1546.20.172Inuit group (Siarnaq)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 216.930.01417869000−897.59170.70.152Norse group (Mundilfari)20202023Ashton et al.
XXIXSiarnaq/ˈsɑːrnək/
Thumb
10.639.33217881100+895.5847.80.309Inuit group (Siarnaq)20002000Gladman et al.
S/2019 S 416.530.01417951800−903.89170.10.408Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 316.430.01418057200+908.1946.00.142Inuit group (Siarnaq)20202023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 4116.340.03418095000−914.62165.70.301Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 616.140.03418205500+919.7146.40.120Inuit group (Siarnaq)20192023Ashton et al.
XXITarvos/ˈtɑːrvəs/
Thumb
13.1152.118215600+926.4337.80.522Gallic group20002000Gladman et al.
S/2020 S 417.030.01418236000+926.9640.10.495Gallic group20202023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 4216.140.03418240800−925.91165.70.157Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
XLIVHyrrokkin/hɪˈrɒkən/
Thumb
14.380.3818341000−931.90149.90.336Norse group (low-inclination)20042005Sheppard et al.
LIGreip/ˈɡrp/
Thumb
15.350.1118379800−937.00174.20.317Norse group (Phoebe)20062006Sheppard et al.
S/2020 S 516.630.01418391400+933.8948.20.220Inuit group (Siarnaq)20202023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 1316.340.03418453300−942.57169.00.265Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2007 S 616.430.01418544900−949.50166.50.169Norse group (Mundilfari)20072023Sheppard et al.
XXVMundilfari/mʊndəlˈværi/
Thumb
14.670.2718588100−952.86167.10.212Norse group (Mundilfari)20002000Gladman et al.
S/2006 S 115.650.06518746200−964.24156.00.105Norse group (Kari)20062006Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 4316.340.03418935000−980.08171.10.432Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 1016.430.01418979900−983.14161.60.151Norse group (Mundilfari)20062023Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 516.630.01419090400−991.44158.80.216Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
LIVGridr/ˈɡrðər/15.840.06519250900−1004.75163.90.187Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
XXXVIIIBergelmir/bɛərˈjɛlmɪər/
Thumb
15.250.1119268400−1005.53158.80.145Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
LJarnsaxa/jɑːrnˈsæksə/15.660.06519273200−1006.46163.00.218Norse group (Mundilfari)20062006Sheppard et al.
XXXINarvi/ˈnɑːrvi/
Thumb
14.570.2719285600−1003.95142.20.441Norse group (low-inclination)20032003Sheppard et al.
XXIIISuttungr/ˈsʊtʊŋɡər/
Thumb
14.670.2719392000−1016.70175.70.116Norse group (Phoebe)20002000Gladman et al.
S/2004 S 4415.850.06519515400−1026.16167.70.129Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 1216.240.03419569800+1035.0638.60.542Gallic group[l]20062023Sheppard et al.
S/2007 S 315.750.06519614000−1034.45173.80.150Norse group (Phoebe)20072007Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 4516.040.03419693600−1038.70154.00.551Norse group (Kari)20042023Sheppard et al.
XLIIIHati/ˈhɑːti/
Thumb
15.450.1119695400−1040.05165.40.372Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 1716.040.03419699300−1040.86167.90.162Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 1116.530.01419711900−1042.29174.10.143Norse group (Phoebe)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 1215.940.03419801200−1048.57164.70.337Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
LIXEggther/ˈɛɡθɛər/15.460.1119843900−1052.32165.00.157Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 1316.140.03419953800−1060.63162.00.313Norse group (Mundilfari)20062023Sheppard et al.
S/2007 S 916.140.03420174600−1078.07159.30.360Norse group (Mundilfari)20072023Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 716.340.03420184900−1080.58174.20.232Norse group (Phoebe)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 816.340.03420286700−1088.87172.80.311Norse group (Phoebe)20192023Ashton et al.
XLFarbauti/fɑːrˈbti/15.850.06520290500−1087.26156.20.249Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
XXXThrymr/ˈθrɪmər/
Thumb
14.380.3820330900−1092.17175.00.467Norse group (Phoebe)20002000Gladman et al.
XXXIXBestla/ˈbɛstlə/
Thumb
14.670.2720338300−1087.17138.30.486Norse group (low-inclination)20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 916.340.03420358800−1093.09159.50.433Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 4616.430.01420513100−1107.59177.20.249Norse group (Phoebe)20042023Sheppard et al.
LVAngrboda/ˈɑːŋɡərbðə/16.240.03420591200−1114.06177.70.216Norse group (Phoebe)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 1116.240.03420663600−1115.00144.60.513Norse group (low-inclination)20192023Ashton et al.
XXXVIAegir/ˈ.ɪər/15.560.06520664700−1119.34166.10.255Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 1016.730.01420700500−1121.99163.90.248Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
LXIBeli/ˈbli/16.140.03420703800−1121.74158.90.087Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 1216.340.03420894700−1138.02167.10.475Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
LVIIGerd/ˈjɛərð/15.940.03420948500−1142.97174.40.518Norse group (Phoebe)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 1316.730.01420964300−1144.79177.30.318Norse group (Phoebe)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2006 S 1416.530.01421062100−1152.67166.70.060Norse group (Mundilfari)20062023Sheppard et al.
LXIIGunnlod/ˈɡʊnlɒð/15.640.06521141100−1157.97160.30.251Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 1516.630.01421190300−1161.60157.80.257Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 616.630.01421254200−1167.94166.90.480Norse group (Mundilfari)20202023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 715.650.06521328200−1173.93164.90.511Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 315.650.06521353300−1174.78156.10.432Norse group (Kari)20062006Sheppard et al.
S/2005 S 516.430.01421366100−1177.82169.50.588Norse group (Mundilfari)20052023Sheppard et al.
LVISkrymir/ˈskrɪmɪər/15.640.06521447600−1185.10175.60.437Norse group (Phoebe)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 1616.530.01421720600−1207.52164.10.204Norse group (Mundilfari)20062023Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 1516.240.03421799400−1213.96161.10.117Norse group (Mundilfari)20062023Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 2815.850.06521865900−1220.69167.90.159Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2020 S 816.430.01421966600−1228.11161.80.252Norse group (Mundilfari)20202023Ashton et al.
LXVAlvaldi/ɔːlˈvɔːldi/15.660.06521994200−1232.18177.40.238Norse group (Phoebe)20042019Sheppard et al.
XLVKari/ˈkɑːri/
Thumb
14.560.2722032800−1231.19153.00.469Norse group (Kari)20062006Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 4816.040.03422136800−1242.41161.90.374Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
LXVIGeirrod/ˈjrɒd/15.940.03422260000−1251.15154.30.539Norse group (Kari)20042019Sheppard et al.
XLIFenrir/ˈfɛnrɪər/15.940.03422330000−1260.19164.50.137Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 5016.430.01422346000−1260.44164.00.450Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 1716.040.03422384100−1264.51168.70.425Norse group (Mundilfari)20062023Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 4916.040.03422399800−1264.25159.70.453Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 1715.940.03422724000−1291.39155.50.546Norse group (Kari)20192023Ashton et al.
XLVIIISurtur/ˈsɜːrtər/15.860.06522745700−1295.60168.40.448Norse group (Mundilfari)20062006Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 1816.140.03422760700−1298.40169.50.131Norse group (Mundilfari)20062023Sheppard et al.
XLVILoge/ˈlɔɪ./
Thumb
15.450.1122919200−1311.80168.10.191Norse group (Mundilfari)20062006Sheppard et al.
XIXYmir/ˈmɪər/
Thumb
12.4195.622954500−1315.08172.30.338Norse group (Phoebe)20002000Gladman et al.
S/2019 S 1916.530.01423044700−1317.83151.80.458Norse group (Kari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 1816.630.01423140700−1327.06154.60.509Norse group (Kari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 2116.240.03423159300−1328.58153.20.394Norse group (Kari)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 3916.140.03423192200−1335.88165.90.101Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 1616.730.01423264100−1340.93162.00.250Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 5316.240.03423279800−1342.44162.60.240Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 2416.040.03423339000+1341.3437.40.071Gallic group[m]20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 3616.140.03423390300−1349.37153.30.625Norse group (Kari)20042019Sheppard et al.
LXIIIThiazzi/θiˈætsi/15.940.03423579000−1366.69158.80.512Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 2016.730.01423679600−1375.53156.10.354Norse group (Kari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2006 S 1916.140.03423801100−1389.33175.50.467Norse group (Phoebe)20062023Sheppard et al.
LXIVS/2004 S 3416.240.03424144900−1420.80168.30.280Norse group (Mundilfari)20042019Sheppard et al.
XLIIFornjot/ˈfɔːrnjɒt/
Thumb
15.160.1124936700−1494.11170.00.213Norse group (Mundilfari)20042005Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 5116.140.03425208000−1519.41171.20.201Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2020 S 1016.930.01425314700−1527.21165.60.296Norse group (Mundilfari)20202023Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 916.040.03425408500−1532.65161.40.531Norse group (Mundilfari)20202023Ashton et al.
LVIIIS/2004 S 2615.750.06526098700−1603.99173.00.147Norse group (Phoebe)20042019Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 2116.240.03426439500−1636.37171.90.155Norse group (Mundilfari)20192023Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 5216.530.01426446800−1633.87165.30.292Norse group (Mundilfari)20042023Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 2216.730.01411280600+447.3145.6820.422Inuit group (Kiviuq)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 2316.730.01411288800+447.849.8030.153Inuit group (Kiviuq)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 2616.530.01411401300+454.5150.8350.31Inuit group (Kiviuq)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3215.750.06517712200+880.0847.0870.371Inuit group (Siarnaq)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3516.730.01418429200934.06157.9750.613Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3716.730.014199800001054.4144.120.402Norse group (low-inclination)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 4116.930.014247738001455.81158.6560.222Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 4416.430.014260832001572.74168.8820.593Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1116.930.01411298100+448.3549.3850.373Inuit group (Kiviuq)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1216.830.01411330300+450.2751.1230.186Inuit group (Kiviuq)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1316.530.01411402800+454.645.3940.468Inuit group (Kiviuq)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1616.530.01417123200836.55166.5570.37Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1716.340.03417080300833.41146.9450.418Norse group (low-inclination)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1916.830.01417871400+891.9848.2090.102Inuit group (Siarnaq)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2016.630.01418133100911.64172.2990.142Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2216.630.01419230200995.61158.4680.078Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2316.630.014195897001023.66166.9140.085Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2416.830.014206331001106.53159.6620.223Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3016.730.014213513001164.79153.7590.605Norse group (Kari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3116.530.014228925001293.17166.3160.232Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3316.930.014234301001338.98164.2950.474Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3416.530.014228730001291.52160.8990.1Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3816.140.034236090001354.35161.3570.521Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3916.730.014246971001449.05161.1720.385Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 4116.630.014253972001511.1163.880.353Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 4216.730.014247501001453.72158.1360.546Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 4316.930.014262323001586.24167.0160.194Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 4416.830.014280438001753.36169.2830.231Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 116.630.01411207800+442.9952.370.373Inuit group (Kiviuq)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 216.730.01411310900+449.1247.5950.228Inuit group (Kiviuq)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 316.530.01417617600+873.0445.3090.321Inuit group (Siarnaq)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 516.730.014250106001476.73164.160.636Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 616.430.01411090800+436.0746.110.471Inuit group (Kiviuq)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 715.940.03411725400+474.0345.8810.219Inuit group (Kiviuq)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 816.730.01414327600640.29165.1790.12Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 916.730.01415108800693.36172.1740.262Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1016.730.01415426700715.36161.5870.27Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1316.630.01416343300780.05170.2010.21Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1616.830.01417246200845.58160.320.233Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1717.130.01417340200+852.533.8380.569Gallic group20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1816.830.01417229200+844.3338.5360.508Gallic group20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1917.030.01417464000+861.6448.2370.056Inuit group (Siarnaq)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2016.730.01418004000901.92134.5550.263Norse group (low-inclination)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2116.930.01418624800948.97159.0180.062Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2216.240.03418428000+933.9746.9940.357Inuit group (Siarnaq)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2316.430.01419212500994.23165.0160.411Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2416.730.014193409001004.22169.2720.299Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2517.030.014197361001035.16164.670.336Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2716.530.014196137001025.54149.0550.558Norse group (low-inclination)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2916.730.014207833001118.63170.8140.105Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3016.730.014213188001162.14143.4730.277Norse group (low-inclination)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3217.220.004210353001139.03169.6040.113Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3316.830.014207541001116.27153.1070.675Norse group (Kari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3416.630.014213701001166.33167.7520.482Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4216.730.014224038001251.98167.0150.082Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4316.430.014234962001344.65168.4120.274Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4516.930.014234199001338.11152.6340.692Norse group (Kari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4616.830.014253665001508.36145.7660.427Norse group (low-inclination)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4717.030.014266534001624.59161.7950.114Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4916.730.014220420001221.77171.8190.058Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 5016.930.01417611300872.57170.2670.174Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 2816.340.03417684100877.99156.4390.178Norse group (Kari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3016.830.01417828600888.77168.8380.1Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3616.830.014200763001062.04166.9660.168Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3816.730.014223562001247.99159.7670.424Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3916.730.014241398001400.28172.2390.104Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1416.730.01416078400761.16163.8320.369Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1516.730.01416835100+815.5235.4450.385Gallic group20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 1816.630.01417780100885.15167.7640.167Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2116.730.01418638400950.01169.070.315Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2517.030.014207489001115.85169.2730.343Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2816.730.014225123001261.08166.0140.43Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2916.830.014219382001213.16166.4570.053Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3216.730.014213975001168.58171.2860.471Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3516.730.014232772001325.9175.0620.173Norse group (Phoebe)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3616.630.014232721001325.46168.8930.339Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 3716.630.014232295001321.82177.2720.284Norse group (Phoebe)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 4016.530.014233118001328.86165.1290.374Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 416.430.01417945800897.55167.410.292Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1116.930.01415041200688.71171.3660.312Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1216.930.01415806900741.97165.9560.656Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1416.830.01417170800840.04168.1440.524Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 1516.830.01417560100868.77157.9840.512Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2616.930.014203087001080.53166.2630.275Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 2816.930.014200327001058.58171.8430.588Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3117.030.014212106001153.31160.6330.175Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3516.830.014219724001215.99168.3110.107Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3616.830.014218564001206.38164.4440.278Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3716.930.014219494001214.09175.3940.247Norse group (Phoebe)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3817.030.014218493001205.78167.6940.317Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 3916.830.014220786001224.82167.4440.056Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4016.930.014223186001244.84166.8180.259Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4116.730.014223358001246.28172.7070.188Norse group (Phoebe)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4416.630.014262877001591.27167.6950.465Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2023 S 4816.630.014204393001090.97169.4070.068Norse group (Mundilfari)20232025Ashton et al.
S/2004 S 5416.140.03411265600+446.4248.1720.417Inuit group (Kiviuq)20042025Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 5516.430.01411319500+449.6351.4480.18Inuit group (Kiviuq)20042025Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 5615.850.06513661000596.13162.5910.358Norse group (Mundilfari)20042025Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 5716.240.03418119300910.59170.3160.239Norse group (Mundilfari)20042025Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 5815.850.06518170500+914.4644.0230.135Inuit group (Siarnaq)20042025Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 5916.430.01419099100985.45170.4470.291Norse group (Mundilfari)20042025Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 6016.530.014194207001010.44172.8840.28Norse group (Phoebe)20042025Sheppard et al.
S/2004 S 6116.340.034208934001127.53170.3730.495Norse group (Mundilfari)20042025Sheppard et al.
S/2005 S 616.340.03417931200+896.4550.3940.099Inuit group (Siarnaq)20052025Sheppard et al.
S/2005 S 716.430.01418734500+957.3634.3130.436Gallic group20052025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2116.730.01415047400689.14169.4270.174Norse group (Mundilfari)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2216.630.01415139000695.44170.6730.231Norse group (Mundilfari)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2316.430.01418176200+914.8942.0550.238Inuit group (Siarnaq)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2416.830.01418143200912.4165.8530.317Norse group (Mundilfari)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2516.430.01418384900930.69154.7280.275Norse group (Kari)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2616.530.01418655900951.35173.6410.22Norse group (Phoebe)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2716.340.034194221001010.55171.2760.16Norse group (Mundilfari)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2816.340.034223618001248.46174.9730.234Norse group (Phoebe)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2006 S 2916.430.014259254001558.48157.7240.163Norse group (Mundilfari)20062025Sheppard et al.
S/2007 S 1016.140.03411380300+453.2640.1910.532Inuit group (Kiviuq)20072025Sheppard et al.
S/2007 S 1116.340.03417602900+871.9538.0190.417Gallic group20072025Sheppard et al.
S/2019 S 2416.140.03411361100+452.1144.5420.478Inuit group (Kiviuq)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 2516.340.03411306800+448.8749.8130.23Inuit group (Kiviuq)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 2716.630.01416179300768.34166.0340.411Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 2916.530.01417345000+852.8536.750.401Gallic group20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3116.530.01417791000+885.9638.4760.594Gallic group20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3316.340.03418930200972.41171.080.278Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 3416.730.01418317400+925.5733.6080.644Gallic group20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 4016.630.014245491001436.04163.1430.06Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 4215.940.034238501001375.15162.5020.168Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2019 S 4316.530.014271853001673.46168.3220.228Norse group (Mundilfari)20192025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2616.630.014215412001180.37159.3270.292Norse group (Mundilfari)20202025Ashton et al.
S/2020 S 2716.430.014216569001189.9143.1510.126Norse group (low-inclination)20202025Ashton et al.
Close

Unconfirmed

These F Ring moonlets listed in the following table (observed by Cassini) have not been confirmed as solid bodies. It is not yet clear if these are real satellites or merely persistent clumps within the F Ring.[22]

More information Name, Image ...
Name Image Diameter (km) Semi-major
axis (km)[55]
Orbital
period (d)[55]
Position Discovery year Status
S/2004 S 3 and S 4[n]Thumb3–5140300+0.619 uncertain objects around the F Ring2004 Were undetected in thorough imaging of the region in November 2004, making their existence improbable
S/2004 S 6Thumb3–5140130+0.618012004 Consistently detected into 2005, may be surrounded by fine dust and have a very small physical core
Close

Spurious

Two moons were claimed to be discovered by different astronomers but never seen again. Both moons were said to orbit between Titan and Hyperion.[102]

Hypothetical

In 2022, scientists of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology proposed the hypothetical former moon Chrysalis, using data from the Cassini–Huygens mission. Chrysalis would have orbited between Titan and Iapetus, but its orbit would have gradually become more eccentric until it was torn apart by Saturn. 99% of its mass would have been absorbed by Saturn, while the remaining 1% would have formed Saturn's rings.[103][104]

Temporary

Much like Jupiter, asteroids and comets will infrequently make close approaches to Saturn, even more infrequently becoming captured into orbit of the planet. The comet P/2020 F1 (Leonard) is calculated to have made a close approach of 978000±65000 km (608000±40000 mi) to Saturn on 8 May 1936, closer than the orbit of Titan to the planet, with an orbital eccentricity of only 1.098±0.007. The comet may have been orbiting Saturn prior to this as a temporary satellite, but difficulty modelling the non-gravitational forces makes whether or not it was indeed a temporary satellite uncertain.[105]

Other comets and asteroids may have temporarily orbited Saturn at some point, but none are presently known to have.

Formation

It is thought that the Saturnian system of Titan, mid-sized moons, and rings developed from a set-up closer to the Galilean moons of Jupiter, though the details are unclear. It has been proposed either that a second Titan-sized moon broke up, producing the rings and inner mid-sized moons,[106] or that two large moons fused to form Titan, with the collision scattering icy debris that formed the mid-sized moons.[107] On 23 June 2014, NASA claimed to have strong evidence that nitrogen in the atmosphere of Titan came from materials in the Oort cloud, associated with comets, and not from the materials that formed Saturn in earlier times.[74] Studies based on Enceladus's tidal-based geologic activity and the lack of evidence of extensive past resonances in Tethys, Dione, and Rhea's orbits suggest that the moons up to and including Rhea may be only 100 million years old.[108]

See also

Notes

  1. If assuming an albedo of 0.04, HV = 16.5 corresponds to a diameter of 3.3 km. The formula for the calculation can be found in absolute magnitude#Small Solar System bodies (H).
  2. The mass of the rings is about the mass of Mimas,[10] whereas the combined mass of Janus, Hyperion and Phoebe—the most massive of the remaining moons—is about one-third of that. The total mass of the rings and small moons is around 5.5×1019 kg.
  3. The photometric color may be used as a proxy for the chemical composition of satellites' surfaces.
  4. A confirmed moon is given a permanent designation by the IAU consisting of a name and a Roman numeral.[43] The eight moons that were known before 1850 are numbered in order of their distance from Saturn; the rest are numbered in the order by which they received their permanent designations. Many small moons have not yet received a permanent designation.
  5. Absolute magnitudes of regular satellites are calculated from their mean diameters and geometric albedos given in NASA's Saturnian Satellite Fact Sheet.[48] Absolute magnitude estimates for some small inner moons are not available as they do not have measured geometric albedos. Absolute magnitudes of irregular satellites were taken from the Minor Planet Center's Natural Satellites Ephemeris Service.[96] Calculations were made with NASA/JPL's Asteroid Size Estimator.[97]
  6. The diameters and dimensions of the small inner moons, from Pan to Helene, are taken from Thomas et al., 2020, Table 1.[98] Diameters and dimensions of Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Iapetus, and Phoebe are from Thomas 2010, Table 1.[46] Diameters of Siarnaq and Albiorix are from Grav et al., 2015, Table 3.[91] The approximate sizes of all other irregular satellites are calculated from their absolute magnitudes with an assumed geometric albedo of 0.04,[97] which is the average value for that population.[91]
  7. Masses of the large round moons, including Hyperion, Phoebe, and Helene, were taken from Jacobson et al., 2022, Table 5.[99] Masses of Atlas, Prometheus, Pandora, Epimetheus, and Janus were taken from Lainey et al., 2023, Table 1.[100] Masses of Pan, Daphnis, Aegaeon, Methone, and Pallene were taken from Thomas et al., 2020, Table 2.[98] Masses of other regular satellites were calculated by multiplying their volumes with an assumed density of 500 kg/m3 (0.5 g/cm3), while masses of irregular satellites were calculated with an assumed density of 1000 kg/m3 (1.0 g/cm3).
  8. Negative orbital periods indicate a retrograde orbit around Saturn (opposite to the planet's rotation). Orbital periods of irregular satellites may not directly correlate with their semi-major axes due to perturbations.
  9. Orbital inclinations of regular satellites and Phoebe are with respect to their Laplace planes. Orbital inclinations of irregular satellites are with respect to the ecliptic.[89]
  10. The irregular moons are categorized as described in Ashton et al., 2025a. Otherwise, for the 128 newly discovered satellites not included in the paper, they are sorted into their categories based on the inclination and semi-major axis criteria stated in Ashton et al., 2025a.[88]
  11. The moon has a similar inclination, but a significantly different semi-major axis. Therefore, it is uncertain whether it comes from the same parent body as the rest of the Inuit group.[88]
  12. Sheppard et al. suggested in 2023 that the moon's identification with the Gallic group is uncertain,[87] but a later study from Ashton et al considers it confidently Gallic and associated with Albiorix, unlike S/2004 S 24.[88]
  13. The moon has a similar inclination, but a significantly larger semi-major axis. Therefore, it is uncertain whether it comes from the same parent body as the rest of the Gallic group.[87][88]
  14. S/2004 S 4 was most likely a transient clump—it has not been recovered since the first sighting.[22]

References

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