We’ve known about Saturn since ancient times, but even today, we are still unraveling the planet’s many mysteries. You probably know about Saturn’s magnificent ring system, but did you also know the planet has 46 natural satellites, or moons? Intrigued? So are astronomers, and here’s some of what they know about this distant planet:

Q: What is Saturn made of?
A: Saturn is known as one of the Gas Giants, a group that includes Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune. These planets are all giant balls of gas. Saturn is thought to consist of a hot inner core made or iron and rock, surrounded by an outer core made of ammonia, methane, and water. Surrounding this outer core is a layer of compressed liquid metallic hydrogen, above which is an area containing hydrogen and helium. The hydrogen and helium mixture is syrupy, turning gaseous near Saturn’s surface, where it becomes part of the planet’s atmosphere. The planet is covered by a thick layer of clouds.

Q: How big is Saturn?
A: Saturn’s volume is 755 times greater than Earth’s. And, with a mass 95 times that of Earth, it is the most massive planet after Jupiter. However, it has the lowest density of any planet in the solar system, and is about one-tenth the density of Earth.

Q: How many rings does Saturn have?
A: Astronomers believe there are seven. They were discovered in 1610 by Galileo Galilei, and up until 1675, people believed there was only one ring. However, astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini announced there were two, and additional observations have revealed seven.

Q: What are Saturn’s rings made of?
A: Saturn’s seven rings are made of ice, and surround the planet at its equator.

Q: How many moons did you say Saturn has?
A: 46--hard to believe, huh? Our single moon shines so bright sometimes, it’s hard to imagine having 46! Not only are there are a lot of moons, they’re also pretty interesting. Four of them -- Pan, Atlas, Prometheus, and Pandora -- are called shepherd moons, because they “herd” particles orbiting Saturn into the planet’s ring system. Titan is the second-largest moon in the solar system, after Jupiter’s Ganymede, and is bigger than Mercury and Pluto. It is the only moon with a dense atmosphere, and many scientists believe Titan’s atmosphere may be similar to Earth’s early atmosphere. Several other moons have startling properties: Iapetus is 10 times brighter on one half than on the other, Mimas has a crater that spans one-third of its surface, and Epimetheus and Janus periodically trade orbits.