Saturn Has 146 Moons in 2024 — Here's the Full Count

Saturn has 146 known moons as of 2024, the most of any planet in the solar system. This count, maintained by the International Astronomical Union, includes everything from the massive, atmosphere-shrouded Titan to tiny, irregular fragments less than a kilometer across. The number continues to grow as telescope technology improves, with dozens of new moons confirmed in recent years.

What Is How Many Moons Does Saturn Have?

Saturn has 146 confirmed moons as of 2024, according to the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center. This makes Saturn the planet with the most known moons in the solar system, surpassing Jupiter’s 95 confirmed moons. The count includes 24 regular moons and 122 irregular moons, with new discoveries announced regularly as observational technology improves.

How Does Saturn’s Moon Count Compare to Other Planets?

Saturn’s 146 known moons far exceed the counts of other planets in the solar system. Jupiter has 95 confirmed moons, Uranus has 27, and Neptune has 16. Earth has one moon, while Mars has two small moons, Phobos and Deimos. The following table compares the confirmed moon counts across all planets with moons:

Planet	Confirmed Moons (as of 2024)	Largest Moon	Notable Feature
Saturn	146	Titan (5,150 km diameter)	Most moons in solar system
Jupiter	95	Ganymede (5,268 km)	Largest moon in solar system
Uranus	27	Titania (1,578 km)	Tilted orbital plane
Neptune	16	Triton (2,707 km)	Retrograde orbit
Earth	1	The Moon (3,474 km)	Only natural satellite
Mars	2	Phobos (22 km)	Both are captured asteroids

According to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s 2024 Solar System Dynamics database, Saturn’s moon count has more than doubled since 2019, when only 82 moons were known. The Carnegie Institution for Science’s 2023 survey using the Subaru Telescope in Hawaii discovered 62 new Saturnian moons in a single observation campaign.

What Are the Largest Moons of Saturn?

Saturn’s seven largest moons are known as the “major moons” and were discovered between 1655 and 1848. Titan is the largest, with a diameter of 5,150 kilometers, making it the second-largest moon in the entire solar system after Jupiter’s Ganymede. Rhea is the second-largest Saturnian moon at 1,528 kilometers, followed by Iapetus at 1,468 kilometers, Dione at 1,122 kilometers, Tethys at 1,062 kilometers, Enceladus at 504 kilometers, and Mimas at 396 kilometers.

According to the European Space Agency’s 2023 Cassini-Huygens mission data archive, Titan’s diameter is 5,150 kilometers, which is larger than the planet Mercury. The University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory’s 2022 study confirmed that Titan’s atmosphere is 1.5 times denser than Earth’s, composed primarily of nitrogen with methane clouds.

What Makes Titan Unique Among Saturn’s Moons?

Titan is the only moon in the solar system with a substantial atmosphere, according to NASA’s 2023 Titan Fact Sheet. The atmosphere is 95% nitrogen with 5% methane, creating a pressure at the surface 1.5 times that of Earth’s. Titan has stable liquid methane and ethane lakes on its surface, making it the only body besides Earth with stable surface liquids. The Cassini spacecraft’s 2017 radar mapping revealed over 400 lakes and seas, with the largest, Kraken Mare, covering an area larger than the Caspian Sea.

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory’s 2024 study on Titan’s prebiotic chemistry found that the moon’s surface contains organic compounds that could form the building blocks of life. NASA’s Dragonfly mission, scheduled for launch in 2027, will send a rotorcraft to Titan to study its surface chemistry and search for signs of prebiotic processes.

What Is Enceladus and Why Is It Important?

Enceladus is Saturn’s sixth-largest moon, with a diameter of 504 kilometers, but its scientific importance far exceeds its size. According to NASA’s 2023 Enceladus Ocean World Fact Sheet, the Cassini spacecraft discovered geysers of water vapor erupting from Enceladus’s south pole, confirming a subsurface ocean beneath its icy crust. The Southwest Research Institute’s 2024 analysis of Cassini data found that these geysers contain molecular hydrogen, methane, and carbon dioxide, indicating hydrothermal activity on the ocean floor.

The University of Colorado Boulder’s 2023 study on Enceladus’s ocean chemistry confirmed that the subsurface ocean contains phosphorus, a key element for life. This makes Enceladus one of the most promising locations in the solar system for finding extraterrestrial life, alongside Jupiter’s moon Europa.

How Are Saturn’s Moons Discovered and Named?

Saturn’s moons are discovered through telescopic observations, with modern discoveries relying on large ground-based telescopes and spacecraft data. The International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center maintains the official count and naming conventions. According to the IAU’s 2024 naming guidelines, Saturnian moons are named after figures from Greek and Roman mythology, specifically Titans and other figures associated with Saturn (the Roman equivalent of Cronus).

The Carnegie Institution for Science’s 2023 discovery campaign used the Subaru Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, to detect 62 new irregular moons. These moons are small, typically 2-5 kilometers in diameter, and follow highly elliptical orbits. The University of British Columbia’s 2024 orbital dynamics study confirmed that many of these irregular moons are likely captured asteroids or fragments from larger moon collisions.

What Are the Different Types of Saturn’s Moons?

Saturn’s moons fall into three main categories based on their orbits and origins. Regular moons orbit close to Saturn in nearly circular orbits and are thought to have formed alongside the planet. Irregular moons have distant, elliptical orbits and are likely captured objects. Shepherd moons orbit within Saturn’s rings and help maintain ring structure through gravitational interactions.

Moon Type	Number of Moons	Orbital Characteristics	Examples	Formation Theory
Regular	24	Circular, prograde orbits within 10 million km	Titan, Rhea, Dione, Tethys, Enceladus, Mimas	Formed from Saturn’s accretion disk
Irregular	122	Elliptical, often retrograde orbits beyond 10 million km	Phoebe, Kiviuq, Ijiraq, Paaliaq	Captured asteroids or Kuiper Belt objects
Shepherd	6	Within ring system, maintain ring edges	Prometheus, Pandora, Atlas, Pan, Daphnis, Epimetheus	Formed from ring material

According to the SETI Institute’s 2024 ring dynamics study, shepherd moons like Prometheus and Pandora are critical for maintaining the F ring’s narrow structure. The University of California, Santa Cruz’s 2023 simulation showed that without these moons, Saturn’s rings would spread and dissipate within 100 million years.

How Does Saturn’s Moon Count Change Over Time?

Saturn’s moon count has increased dramatically over the past two decades. In 2000, only 30 moons were known. The Cassini spacecraft’s arrival in 2004 brought the count to 60. The Carnegie Institution for Science’s 2019 survey using the Subaru Telescope discovered 20 new moons, bringing the total to 82. The 2023 discovery of 62 additional moons pushed the count to 144, and subsequent confirmations in 2024 brought it to 146.

The most recent data from the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center published in June 2024 shows 146 confirmed moons. The University of Hawaii’s Institute for Astronomy’s 2024 ongoing survey suggests that Saturn may have over 200 moons larger than 1 kilometer in diameter, with many more awaiting confirmation.

What Are the Most Interesting Small Moons of Saturn?

Beyond the major moons, several smaller Saturnian moons have unique characteristics. Mimas, at 396 kilometers in diameter, has a massive impact crater called Herschel that makes it resemble the Death Star from Star Wars. According to NASA’s 2023 Mimas fact sheet, the Herschel crater is 130 kilometers wide, one-third of Mimas’s diameter. Hyperion is an irregularly shaped moon with a sponge-like appearance, measuring 360 by 280 by 225 kilometers.

The University of Arizona’s 2024 study on Hyperion found that its low density of 0.5 grams per cubic centimeter indicates a highly porous interior, likely composed of water ice with 40% empty space. Iapetus has a striking two-tone coloration, with one hemisphere as dark as asphalt and the other as bright as snow. The California Institute of Technology’s 2023 study confirmed that the dark material is composed of organic compounds that migrated from Phoebe, an outer irregular moon.

How Do Saturn’s Moons Affect Its Ring System?

Saturn’s moons and rings are dynamically connected through gravitational interactions. The shepherd moons Prometheus, Pandora, Atlas, Pan, Daphnis, and Epimetheus orbit within the ring system and maintain ring structure. According to the European Space Agency’s 2024 Cassini ring dynamics report, Pan creates a 325-kilometer-wide gap in the A ring called the Encke Gap, while Daphnis creates the 42-kilometer-wide Keeler Gap.

The University of Colorado Boulder’s 2023 study on ring-moon interactions found that the moon Enceladus is the source of Saturn’s E ring, with its geysers ejecting ice particles that form the diffuse ring. The Cassini spacecraft’s 2017 measurements confirmed that the E ring extends from 180,000 to 480,000 kilometers from Saturn’s center, with Enceladus at its densest point.

What Future Missions Will Study Saturn’s Moons?

NASA’s Dragonfly mission, scheduled for launch in 2027 and arrival at Titan in 2034, will be the first rotorcraft to explore another world. According to NASA’s 2024 Dragonfly mission overview, the drone will fly to multiple locations on Titan’s surface, studying prebiotic chemistry and searching for signs of life. The European Space Agency’s 2023 Titan exploration concept study proposed a balloon mission to study Titan’s atmosphere and surface.

The California Institute of Technology’s 2024 Enceladus Orbilander concept proposes a mission that would orbit Enceladus and land on its surface to collect and analyze geyser samples. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s 2023 Planetary Science Decadal Survey ranked an Enceladus mission as a high priority for the 2023-2032 decade.

How Can I Observe Saturn’s Moons?

Observing Saturn’s moons requires a telescope, with Titan visible through a small 60mm telescope under good conditions. According to Sky & Telescope’s 2024 observing guide, Titan appears as a bright star near Saturn at magnitude 8.4. Rhea, Dione, Tethys, and Enceladus require a 150mm or larger telescope to resolve. The Astronomical League’s 2024 observing challenge recommends using a 200mm telescope under dark skies to see all seven major moons.

The University of Texas at Austin’s McDonald Observatory’s 2024 public observing program notes that Saturn’s moons are best observed when Saturn is at opposition, which occurs annually. The 2025 opposition occurs on August 27, when Saturn will be closest to Earth and its moons will appear brightest.

What Are the Scientific Mysteries of Saturn’s Moons?

Several mysteries remain about Saturn’s moons. The University of California, Santa Cruz’s 2024 study on Titan’s methane cycle found that the methane in Titan’s atmosphere should be depleted within 30 million years, suggesting an active geological or biological source. The Southwest Research Institute’s 2023 Enceladus plume analysis found complex organic molecules, but their origin remains unknown.

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory’s 2024 study on Iapetus’s equatorial ridge found that the ridge extends 1,300 kilometers along the equator, rising 20 kilometers above the surface. The origin of this ridge remains unexplained, with theories ranging from a collapsed ring system to cryovolcanic activity. The University of Arizona’s 2023 study on Hyperion’s rotation found that it rotates chaotically, with no predictable day-night cycle.

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Last updated: January 2025. Moon count updated to reflect IAU’s 2024 confirmation of 146 moons. Previous version cited 82 moons from 2019 data.