The planet Saturn is famous for its rings, which are circles. But Saturn also has a large storm at its north pole – a storm shaped like a hexagon. The storm is twice as wide as our whole Earth! It’s probably been spinning in the same spot for hundreds of years. So if you ever visit, you’ll definitely want to bring an umbrella.
Wee ones: A triangle has 3 sides and a hexagon has 6 sides. Which shape has more sides?
Little kids: If there are 8 planets in our solar system, and Saturn is the 6th-closest planet to the Sun, how many planets are farther away from the Sun than Saturn? Bonus: Saturn’s cool rings, which are made of chunks of ice and dust, are also home to many moons, including 53 major named ones. Earth has just 1 moon. How many more major moons does Saturn have?
Big kids: The hexagon storm is about twice as wide as Earth, which is about 8,000 miles wide. How wide is the hex storm? Bonus: Earth itself spins pretty far from the Sun — 93 million miles! — but Saturn is about 10 times as far away. About how far from the Sun is Saturn?
Answers:
Wee ones: A hexagon, because 6 is more than 3.
Little kids: Just 2 planets! Bonus: 52 more moons.
Big kids: 16,000 miles. Bonus: 930 million miles.
