Satellites of saturn

Saturn's system recreated in a photomontage of images taken by Voyager probes in his encounter with Saturn in November 1980. This view of the artist shows Dione in the forehead, Saturn rising behind, Mimas, Tetis and disappearing in the distance to the right, Enceded and Rea out of Saturn's rings to the left, and Titan in his distance orbit at the top.

The planet Saturn has an unknown number of satellites (83 with safe orbits), the largest of which, Titan, is the only satellite in the solar system with a significant atmosphere. The Saturn satellite system offers several interesting examples of orbital dynamics, such as coorbital satellites, Trojan satellites, and shepherd satellites. Some satellites are also in resonance with each other.

The satellites that were known since before the start of space research are: Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Titan, Hyperion, Iapetus and Phoebe.

In 2004, 12 new satellites were detected, whose orbits suggest that they are fragments of larger objects captured by Saturn, and whose existence has been confirmed by the Cassini-Huygens mission; this mission has also discovered several new satellites.

On April 15, 2013, the Cassini spacecraft photographed disturbances in Saturn's outer rings, and it recently became clear that a new satellite was forming. That detected object, which measures no more than half a kilometer, was baptized as Peggy.

Growing titan and Enced through Saturn's rings, captured by Cassini probe.

Groups of satellites

Saturn's satellites can be divided into different groups:

• Titan: Saturn's largest satellite, of planetary size (greater than Mercury). It has a dense atmosphere. It is the only one that can show its apparent disk to the fans, using for it telescopes with diameter greater than 200 mm of opening with more than 300 increments; in the best oppositions it only reaches to measure 0.88 seconds of arc.

• Ice creamy medium satellites. They are medium-sized satellites, all discovered through telescopic observations: Mimas, Encélado, Tetis, Dione, Rea, Hiperion and Jápeto. They all have surfaces composed of ice, and are highly cratered.

• Ring satellites: Small satellites that orbit within Saturn's rings, creating seemingly clean regions of material. The best known example is Pan, which helps create the Encke division. Another small satellite, Dafne (S/2005 S 1), is responsible for the Keeler division.

• Pastoral Satellites: They are satellites whose orbits are close to the ring system of the planet and that contribute to modeling the structure of these. Prometheus and Pandora help model the F ring.

• Trojan satellites: The Trojan satellites orbit the same distance from Saturn, but 60° in front of or behind one of the largest satellites. For example, Telesto and Calipso are Tetis Trojans, and Helena and Pollux (recently discovered by the Cassini-Huygens mission) are Dione Trojans.

• Coorbital satellites: They are satellites that share the same orbit, for example Jano and Epimetheus, this produced confusion in their discovery because they always thought of a single satellite, and also present in their orbital dynamics a curious case of exchange avoiding mutual shock.

• Irregular satellites. It is the largest group, whose largest member is Febe; the rest consists of small satellites (a few kilometers in diameter) orbiting large distances from Saturn. In turn, this group can be even more divided into families such as the Inuit group, the Norse group and the Gallic group.

• Minor interior satellites. Small satellites orbiting Mimas and Encélado, like Metone and Palene, recently discovered by the Cassini-Huygens mission. Recently, thanks to that mission, arches of rings have been discovered orbiting alongside some of those satellites, such as Anthe and the already mentioned Metone, probably caused by meteorite impacts on those satellites.

Nameless satellites

When a satellite is discovered, it is assigned a name or provisional designation until the International Astronomical Union gives it its own. The designation of the satellites is provided following a standard on all planets:

1. One placed S capitalized symbolizing satellite.
2. He follows a bar and the year of discovery.
3. The initial name of the planet to which it orbits is placed; in the case of Saturn, a S capital.
4. And finally, the number is added in the oral sense in which it was discovered in that year. For example. S/2004 S 13 was the satellite number 13 discovered in 2004 and S/2006 S 1 was the first discovered in 2006.

Saturn Satellite Table

Name	Average orbital radio (km)	Orbit period(days)	Diameter (km)	apparent magnitude	Image
S/2009 S 1	≈ 117 000	≈ 0,47	≈ 0.3
Pan	133 600	0.575	20	19m.4{displaystyle 19^{m}.4}
Dafne	137 000	-	6.5	-
Atlas	137 670	0,6019	30.2	18m.1{displaystyle 18^{m}.1}
Prometheus	139 350	0,613	86.2	16m.5{displaystyle 16^{m}.5}
Pandora	141 700	0.629	81.4	16m.3{displaystyle 16^{m}.3}
Epimetheus	151 420	0,694	116.2	14m.5{displaystyle 14^{m}.5}
Jano	151 470	0.695	178	15m.5{displaystyle 15^{m}.5}
Ageon	167 500	0.808 12	0.5	-
Mimas	185 540	0.9417	396.4	12m.9{displaystyle 12^{m}.9}
Metone	approx. 194 000	1.0083	3	-
Anthe	approx. 197 700	1.01	2	-
Palene	approx. 211 000	1,1417	4	-
Ice cream.	238 040	1.370	499	11m.8{displaystyle 11^{m}.8}
Tetis	294 670	1.888	1046	10m.3{displaystyle 10^{m}.3}
Telesto	294 670	1.888	24.8	19m.0{displaystyle 19^{m}.0}
Calipso	294 670	1.888	21,4	18m.5{displaystyle 18^{m}.5}
Dione	377 420	2,737	1118	10m.4{displaystyle 10^{m}.4}
Helena	377 420	2,737	32	18m.5{displaystyle 18^{m}.5}
Pollux	377 396	2,736 915	3.5	?{displaystyle}
Rea	527 040	4.518	1528	9m.7{displaystyle 9^{m}.7}
Titan	1 221 850	15.495	5150	8m.4{displaystyle 8^{m}.4}
Hyperion	1 464 100	21,280	270	14m.2{displaystyle 14^{m}.2}
Jápeto	3 561 300	79.330	1436	10m.0{displaystyle 10^{m}.0} (var.)
Kiviuq	11 365 000	449,22	14	22m.0{displaystyle 22^{m}.0}
Ijiraq	11 442 000	451,47	10	22m.6{displaystyle 22^{m}.6}
Febe	12 952 000	550.479	213	16m.5{displaystyle 16^{m}.5}
Paaliaq	15 198 000	686.94	20	21m.3{displaystyle 21^{m}.3}
Skadi	15 641 000	728,18	6	23m.6{displaystyle 23^{m}.6}
Albiorix	16 394 000	783,47	26	20m.5{displaystyle 20^{m}.5}
S/2007 S 2	16 560 000	-792.96	6
Bebhionn	17 153 520	838.77	6	-
Skoll	17 473 800	-862.37	6	24m.5{displaystyle 24^{m}.5}
Erriapo	17 604 000	871.25	8	23m.0{displaystyle 23^{m}.0}
Tarqeq	17 910 600	894.86	7
S/2004 S 13	18 056 300	- 905,85	6
Greip	18 065 700	-906,56	6	24m.4{displaystyle 24^{m}.4}
Hyrokkin	18 168 300	-914,29	8	23m.5{displaystyle 23^{m}.5}
Siarnaq	18 195 000	895.55	32	20m.1{displaystyle 20^{m}.1}
Tarvos	18 239 000	926,19	15	22m.1{displaystyle 22^{m}.1}
Jarnsaxa	18 556 900	-943,78	6	24m.7{displaystyle 24^{m}.7}
Narvi	18 719 000	956,19	7	23m.9{displaystyle 23^{m}.9}
Mundilfari	18 722 000	951,56	6	23m.8{displaystyle 23^{m}.8}
S/2006 S 1	18 930 200	-972,41	6
S/2004 S 17	19 099 200	-985,45	4
Bergelmir	19 104 000	-985,83	6
Suttungr	19 465 000	1016.51	6	23m.9{displaystyle 23^{m}.9}
Hati	19 709 300	-1033,05	6
S/2004 S 12	19 905 900	-1048.54	5
Farbauti	19 984 800	- 1054,78	5
Thrymr	20 219 000	1091.76	6	23m.9{displaystyle 23^{m}.9}
Aegir	20 482 900	-1094,46	6	-
S/2007 S 3	20 518 500	-1100	5	-
Bestla	20 570 000	- 1101.45	7	-
S/2004 S 7	20 576 700	- 1101.99	6	-
S/2006 S 3	21 076 300	-1142,37	6	-
Fenrir	21 930 644	-1212,53	4	-
Surtur	22 288 916	-1242,56	6	-
Kari	22 321 200	-1245,06	7	-
Ymir	22 429 673	-1254,15	18	21m.7{displaystyle 21^{m}.7}
Loge	22 984 322	-1300,95	6	-
Fornjot	24 504 879	-1432,16	6

Notes on names

Some asteroids share names with some of Saturn's satellites: (55) Pandora, (106) Dione, (577) Rhea, (1809) Prometheus, (1810) Epimetheus.