"In the pursuit of virtue, don't be afraid to overtake your teacher."
"Young people should not be taken lightly. How do you know that they will not one day be better than you are now?"

--Confucius

"True poets are only the interpreters of the Gods."

-- Socrates

You laugh because I'm different, I laugh because you're the same.


Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Solids Liquids and Gases of Saturn

    Searching through a telescope.  Noticing all of the stars in the sky above you.  The stars, the moon, and planets are all shining so brightly.  You love being able to turn the telescope, because looking through it is like a kaleidoscope.  Everything changes in a blink of an eye just by a slight tilt. Gazing up you notice a large dot.   Your telescope lets you see the rings and color of this planet, it's Saturn.  All of the ice in the rings and the colorful gases changing the color of the planet itself.  Saturn is definitely the most beautiful planet in the sky because of this.
    Saying that Saturn has a solid center is debatable, but still possible.  While Saturn might not have a rocky center, there are other solids in other places on the planet.  Such as the rings.  Each of the rings are made up of two main substances, ice and rock.  Ice is the greater substance in the rings, but there are rocky particles covered in ice that make up part as well.  The rest of Saturn is pretty much all liquids or gases.
    Liquids can be found in man different parts of Saturn.  The center of Saturn has several liquids surrounding or around the area.  Closest inward you can find water and liquid metallic hydrogen.  Surrounding that is a layer of hydrogen and helium in a thick, sticky form.  The last place with liquids is one of the moons.  Titan has now had confirmed lakes of ethane which can also release mists and gases.
    There are several types of gas on Saturn.  What we see from Earth is just wispy clouds of ammonia and perhaps water vapor. Below this is just hydrogen with trace amounts of helium. You would sink right down. And as you got deeper into the planet, the temperatures and pressures rise to the point that you would be crushed.  75% of the entire planet is made up of hydrogen and about 25% helium, so if placed in a big enough ocean, the planet itself would float!
    From gases to solids, there are several substances floating around Saturn.  There are only two important solids, ice and rock, but there are several liquids on Saturn.  Because the largest part of the planet is made up from different gases and mists, if you put Saturn in a large enough pool, it would float right to the top.  From the core of the planet to the rings, there are many different materials flying around Saturn.
    Resources
  1. "Does Saturn Have a Solid Core?." Universe Today. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2011. <http://www.universetoday.com/15303/does-saturn-have-a-solid-core/>.
  2. "Saturn." Chris Mihos - Webhome. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2011. <http://burro.astr.cwru.edu/stu/advanced/saturn.html>.
  3. "Saturn." The Nine Planets Astronomy for Kids. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2011. <http://kids.nineplanets.org/saturn.htm>.

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