Like all the planets, Saturn moves through the zodiac constellations. Because Saturn is so far away, about 10 times farther from the Sun than the Earth is, it will not appear as a dazzling "star" like Jupiter and Venus do. Look for a pale yellow object, about as bright as the other brightest stars in the sky. You'll need to check the chart for when and where Saturn will be visible.
Many a new stargazers has been awed by the appearance of Saturn's beautiful rings. When Galileo first saw them, in his primitive telescope, he could not quite make out the separation between the rings and the planet. He hence described Saturn as having "ears"! Saturn and its rings are tilted relative to its orbit, so as the years pass and Saturn orbits around the Sun, our view of the rings changes. The rings are at their widest every 15 years or so. This will next occur in 2003. Likewise, every 15 years or so the rings are parallel to our line of side, and appear edge-on. For a short time, they even disappear from view! This occurs in 1995-1996. During times when the rings are edge-on, there is no sunlight reflecting off the ring system and Saturn appears only half as bright. This is a good time to look for Saturn's moons.
During times when Saturn's rings are clearly visible, look for the Cassini division in the rings. This is a gap, like a sharp black line, separating the outer third of the ring from the inner part.
Although Saturn's rings are dazzling, don't miss its other interesting features as well. Like Jupiter, Saturn's disk is rather squashed, and wider at the equator. Unlike Jupiter, Saturn does not have prominent dark and light bands. But if you are persistent, you might be able to trace a dim band around the equator or a slightly darker area near the pole. Occasionally a storm erupts on Saturn, and you may be able to see a light splotch. Also, look for the shadow of the rings on Saturn's disk.
Although Saturn has over 20 moons, generally only 3 or 4 will be visible in the telescope. Saturn's larger moons orbit a great distance from the planet, in the same plane as the tilt of the rings. So Titan, the largest moon, may appear either as much as 4.5 ring diameters away, or closer to the planet but above or below it. Three other faint moons, Rhea, Dione, and Tethys, are closer to the planet and considerably dimmer. But you may be able to see them.
Saturn, like Jupiter, is a giant gas. However, because it is so much farther from the Sun, and thus colder than Jupiter, it has a thicker layer of icy ammonia clouds and less of the dark banded structure that Jupiter has. Saturn is not very dense. In spite of its great size, you wouldn't weigh much more on Saturn than you do on Earth. And, if you could find a bathtub large enough, Saturn would float in it.
The rings are made up of pieces of ice, billions of them, which range from the size of hailstones to that of an automobile. The ring system is huge, and if you placed Saturn between the Earth and the Moon, the rings would nearly fill up the space. Scientists are not yet sure of the origin of the rings, but most likely they are a moon which never formed, or possibly the debris from two moons or objects which collided.
Sketch Saturn, its ring, and its moons. Note the date and time.
Approximate position of Saturn in the early evening hours:
When Where to look Ring Plane
Spring 1996 not visible
Summer 1996 early AM
Fall 1996 east
Winter 1997 west
Spring 1997 not visible
Summer 1997 early AM
Fall 1997 east
Winter 1998 west
Spring 1998 not visible
Summer 1998 early AM
Fall 1998 east
Winter 1999 west
Spring 1999 not visible
Summer 1999 early AM
Fall 1999 east
Winter 2000 west
Spring 2000 not visible
Summer 2000 early AM
Fall 2000 east
2003 rings at their widest
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