"Saturn" is a planet in our solar system that is known for its distinctive ring system. It is the sixth planet from the sun and the second-largest planet in the solar system, after Jupiter. Saturn is primarily composed of hydrogen and helium, with small amounts of other elements.
In the aerospace context, Saturn refers to the Saturn program, a series of NASA missions that explored Saturn and its moons, that was active between the years 1957 and 1975. The program is most well-known for the launch of the Saturn V rocket, which was used for the Apollo missions that sent astronauts to the Moon.
Examples of Saturn missions are:
- Saturn I (1961-1965) was the first of the Saturn family of rockets, it was used for testing the first stages and the engines of the Saturn V rocket
- Apollo 8 (1968) was the first manned mission to orbit the Moon, and it was launched using a Saturn V rocket
- Saturn V (1967-1973) was used to launch Apollo 11, the first manned mission to the Moon in 1969, and other Apollo missions.
- Pioneer 11 (1973-1974) was a probe that flew by Saturn and returned the first close-up images of the planet and its rings.
- Cassini–Huygens (1997-2017) was a joint NASA/ESA mission that explored Saturn, its rings and its moons, it provided detailed information about the planet's atmosphere, magnetic field and the moons.
Saturn continues to be an object of scientific interest, and there are plans for future missions to study the planet and its moons.