Saturn is one of the most fascinating planets in the Solar System, both due to its size and the ring system that surrounds it. It is the second largest in our system, and in fact its interior could host more than 700 planets like Earth. It is located at a distance of 9.5 astronomical units, the equivalent of nine and a half times the distance from the Earth to the Sun. Despite its remoteness, observing this planet is very rewarding due to its large size.
On June 3, Saturn will be in opposition, which means that it will be in the diametrically opposite point of the Sun with respect to the Earth. Therefore, the three stars will be aligned in the following order: Saturn, Earth, Sun. When the Sun sets on the western horizon, Saturn will appear on the eastern horizon and will be visible throughout the night. Without a doubt, the days before and after the opposition are the best to enjoy your observation.
How to find it?
To locate the planet we will have to look at the constellation of Ophiuchus. At first glance it will be seen as a luminous point of yellowish tone and stable brightness. It is undoubtedly the brightest star in that constellation these days. If you want to enjoy observing this planet, it is necessary to use a telescope that allows you to reach at least 200 magnifications.
Observation of Saturn through a telescope reveals two peculiarities. The first is the ring system that surrounds the planet in its equatorial plane. These rings are made up of icy particles of different sizes. When Galileo detected them in 1610, he was not aware of what he was observing due to the limited capacity of his telescope. Decades later, in 1659, a Dutch mathematician and astronomer, Christiaan Huygens, revealed that it was a ring system . That same year he also discovered Titan, Saturn’s largest satellite.
The rings are distributed concentrically formed into different sections. The Cassini division is one of these separations and is another feature that we can observe with a telescope as long as the night is stable. Another is the Encke division, narrower than the previous one and which requires photographic techniques to identify it.
The second peculiarity is the flattening of the planet. Saturn has a rapid rotation period of just over 10 hours which, added to its low density, the lowest of all the planets in the Solar System, and its relative low gravity, causes the disk to adopt a slightly oval shape. . Like Jupiter, during the observation of Saturn it is also possible to appreciate the bands that form on the planet, although they are a little more subtle and less striking.
Saturn has more than sixty satellites orbiting around it. Of all of them, Titan, the largest, can be seen as a yellowish star , without actually observing any details on its surface.
Amadeo Aznar, Isaac Aznar Observatory, CAAT-Alto Turia Astronomical Center
