Myths about Saturn and its Moons

Saturn is one of the five planets known since ancient times, and no one knows who first observed it. The planet was named after the Roman god, Saturn, the god of agriculture and the harvest. He is frequently shown holding a sickle in his left hand and wheat in his right hand. In Roman mythology, his mother was Terra (Gaea) and his father was Caelus (Uranus). There are also interesting myths about Saturn's Moons, including Pan, the Greek god protector of shepherds, sheep, and goats.
Saturn, the god of agriculture and the harvest.  A sketch by Polidoro Caldara da Caravaggio (1495-1543) held at the  Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam<p><small><em>Image is in the public domain.</em></small></p>According to <a href="http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-277">NASA scientists</a>, the Voyager 1 spacecraft entered interstellar space in August 2012, becoming the first spacecraft to leave the <a href="/our_solar_system/solar_system.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">solar system</a>. The space probe is about 19 billion km from the <a href="/sun/sun.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">Sun</a>.  <a href="/space_missions/voyager.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">Voyager 1 and 2</a> were launched in 1977 on a <a href="/space_missions/voyager.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">mission</a> that flew them both by <a href="/jupiter/jupiter.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">Jupiter</a> and <a href="/saturn/saturn.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">Saturn</a>, with Voyager 2 continuing to <a href="/uranus/uranus.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">Uranus</a> and <a href="/neptune/neptune.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">Neptune</a>. Voyager 2 is the longest continuously operated spacecraft. It is about 15 billion km away from the <a href="/sun/sun.html&edu=elem&dev=1/windows.html">Sun</a>.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of NASA</em></small></p>

Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA