OTD In Space – March 25: Christiaan Huygens Discovers Saturn's Moon Titan
- 28 days ago
On March 25, 1655, Saturn's moon Titan was discovered by the Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens (a name that you've probably heard mispronounced as "Hoy-gens").
Titan is the largest moon of Saturn and it was the first of 62 moons to be found orbiting Saturn. Huygens discovered Titan using a telescope he designed himself. While looking at Saturn's rings, he noticed a bright and tiny dot nearby. He suspected it was a moon, but just to be sure, he kept watching it for a few days. He confirmed that the tiny speck was orbiting Saturn and therefore must have been a moon. More than 300 years later, the European Space Agency sent a spacecraft to Titan and named it after him.
Titan is the largest moon of Saturn and it was the first of 62 moons to be found orbiting Saturn. Huygens discovered Titan using a telescope he designed himself. While looking at Saturn's rings, he noticed a bright and tiny dot nearby. He suspected it was a moon, but just to be sure, he kept watching it for a few days. He confirmed that the tiny speck was orbiting Saturn and therefore must have been a moon. More than 300 years later, the European Space Agency sent a spacecraft to Titan and named it after him.