This is a drawing of the interior of Saturn.
Click on image for full size
A Look at the Inside of Saturn
The Giant planets do not have the same kind of layers inside that the earth-like planets do. The history of the giant planets was so different that they formed with much more gas on the inside.
Saturn is made of the simple molecules hydrogen and helium, and they become liquid in the environment that is found deep inside Saturn.
Motions inside Saturn help form the powerful magnetosphere of Saturn. Heat from within Saturn contributes to the unusual movements of the atmosphere.
Shop Windows to the Universe Science Store!
Our online store
includes issues of NESTA's quarterly journal, The Earth Scientist
, full of classroom activities on different topics in Earth and space science, ranging from seismology
, rocks and minerals
, and Earth system science
You might also be interested in:
There is no surface to the giant planets, only a gradual change from the atmosphere, as shown in this drawing. The gases which Saturn is mostly made of change to liquid inside Saturn, but the change is...more
Saturn's magnetosphere is not as big as Jupiter's, but it is still pretty big. It is big enough to hold all of Saturn's moons. The shape of the magnetosphere is affected by its size. The shape is also...more
The first liquid layer inside Saturn, right under the atmosphere, is a layer of liquid hydrogen!. The air becomes thicker and thicker, like a dense fog, with more and more liquid drops, until the hydrogen...more
Saturn is the second largest planet in our solar system. It is also very bright in the sky. The ancient Greeks named the planet after the god of farming and time. The rings of Saturn were first seen by...more
The clouds of Saturn are much less colorful than those of Jupiter. This is because Saturn's atmosphere is made of more sulfur. Sulfur makes Saturn look yellow. The atmosphere of Saturn, like Jupiter, is...more
The Giant planets do not have the same kind of layers inside that the earth-like planets do. The history of the giant planets was so different that they formed with much more gas on the inside. Saturn...more
Have you ever seen a picture of Saturn's rings? If you have ever seen a picture of Saturn, it's likely you saw its rings too! The rings are very pretty and many colors. They circle around the middle of...more