Saturn
Saturn is in the constellation of
Aquarius,
at a distance of
View interactive star map
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and is the second largest planet in the Solar System after Jupiter. It has a diameter of 116,460 kilometers and a mass of 5.68 x 10^26 kilograms, making it approximately 95 times more massive than Earth. Saturn is a gas giant planet with a composition similar to Jupiter, primarily composed of hydrogen and helium with trace amounts of other gases. The planet is famous for its extensive ring system, consisting of numerous narrow, bright rings composed of ice particles, rock debris, and dust. Saturn has a day length of 10.7 hours and an orbital period of 29.4 Earth years. The planet has 82 known moons, with the largest being Titan, a moon with a thick atmosphere and the only known moon with stable liquid on its surface. The planet has been explored by multiple spacecraft, including NASA's Cassini-Huygens mission, which spent 13 years in orbit around Saturn and its moons.
Celestial Coordinates
Apparent
J2000
Additional Information
Rise and Set Times
Today's rise,
transit and set times of
Saturn from
Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
Azimuth: 98.4°
Max altitude: 30.1°
Azimuth: 261.6°
- Saturn is
below the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
- Given its current magnitude, Saturn is visible to the naked eye, easy and bright under dark skies, might be more difficult from heavily light polluted areas.
- Go to interactive sky chart
If you need to access this information frequently for your observations, you can create a simple
customized Quick Access page,
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Finder Charts
Sky map showing Saturn in Aquarius on October, 12 2024.
Field of view: 10x6 degrees. View in interactive sky chart
High precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Saturn is right now.
Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Saturn?,
a page that provides all the information needed to find Saturn in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Distance from Earth
- Saturn is below the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
- Given its current magnitude, Saturn is visible to the naked eye, easy and bright under dark skies, might be more difficult from heavily light polluted areas.
- Go to interactive sky chart
Finder Charts
The distance of Saturn from Earth is currently
The following chart shows the distance of Saturn from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with an interval of 1 day.
The value of the reported distance might be somewhat inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of Saturn from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach
Between 1 January 1600 and 30 December 2499, the closest approach of Saturn to Earth happens on Wed Dec 11 1619 at a distance of 8.012797 Astronomical Units, or 1,198,697,442 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Saturn, according to the most recent ephemerides data. Magnitude data is sampled with a 2 days interval and there might be inaccuracies for objects changing brightness very rapidly during the course of a few days. For comets there could be large discrepancies between the observed and predicted brightness because of their highly dynamic behaviour.
Physical Data
The following shows the known values of the most important physical parameters of Saturn. Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Physical Parameter | Value | Relative to Earth |
|---|---|---|
| Diameter | 116464 km | 9.1402 |
| Mass | 568.319 x 1024 kg | 95.1609 |
| Density | 0.6871 gr/cm3 | 0.1246 |
| Escape Velocity | 36.09 km/s | 3.2252 |
| Sideral Rotation | 10.6562 hours | 0.4452 |
| Absolute Magnitude | -8.88 | |
| Geometric Albedo | 0.47 |
15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Saturn computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Apparent DiameterDiameter | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 Oct 05 | 23h 04m 47s | -08° 16’ 32” | 0.68 | 18.3” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 06 | 23h 04m 33s | -08° 17’ 55” | 0.68 | 18.3” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 07 | 23h 04m 20s | -08° 19’ 16” | 0.68 | 18.3” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 08 | 23h 04m 06s | -08° 20’ 35” | 0.69 | 18.3” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 09 | 23h 03m 53s | -08° 21’ 52” | 0.69 | 18.3” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 10 | 23h 03m 40s | -08° 23’ 07” | 0.70 | 18.2” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 11 | 23h 03m 27s | -08° 24’ 21” | 0.70 | 18.2” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 12 | 23h 03m 15s | -08° 25’ 32” | 0.71 | 18.2” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 13 | 23h 03m 02s | -08° 26’ 42” | 0.71 | 18.2” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 14 | 23h 02m 50s | -08° 27’ 50” | 0.72 | 18.2” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 15 | 23h 02m 39s | -08° 28’ 55” | 0.72 | 18.1” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 16 | 23h 02m 27s | -08° 30’ 00” | 0.72 | 18.1” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 17 | 23h 02m 16s | -08° 31’ 01” | 0.73 | 18.1” | Aquarius |
| 2024 Oct 18 | 23h 02m 06s | -08° 32’ 01” | 0.73 | 18.1” | Aquarius |
Additional Resources
- Position and finder charts (see also Where is Saturn?)
- Distance from Earth (see also How far is Saturn from Earth?)
- When does Saturn rise and set?
- Brightness (see also How bright is Saturn?)
- Physical data. Detailed information about physical properties of Saturn, such as mass and geometric properties.
- 15 days ephemerides. Table showing celestial coordinates and magnitude of Saturn for the past and next 7 days.
- Interactive sky chart. An online planetarium application that shows where to locate Saturn in the sky from your location.
- Live position tracker. A high precision sky chart that uses real deep sky imagery to help locate Saturn with your telescope or on your astrophotographies.