Saturn spins slower than thought
5 May 2006
by Richard Conan-Davies
Saturn was thought to take about 11 hours to spin, now it seems it takes 10 hours and 47 minutes. This is according to a recent series of measurements of Saturns very steady magnetic field, taken by the Cassini magnetometer. Measuring the rotation of a gaseous planet is not easy because there is no steady regular point of reference. Professor Michele Dougherty of Imperial College London, explained that "Making this measurement has been one of team's most important science goals. Finding a period in the magnetic field rotation helps us to understand the internal structure of Saturn's magnetic fields and from that, of Saturn itself, which will help us understand how the planet formed. After almost two years of collecting data, we are starting to get fascinating insights in Saturn, but we still have more questions than we do answers." In the case of saturn they measured the almost perfectly aligned magnetic field with the rotation axis and found enough of a slight variation to calculate a more accurate measurement of the planet's rotation
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