• Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, with the giant planet behind it in a view from the Cassini-Huygens spacecraftZUMA Press, Inc./Alamy Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, with the giant planet behind it in a view from the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft ZUMA Press, Inc./Alamy The story of Saturn, its rings and moons, may have started with its largest moon, Titan. • A collision between an early proto-Titan and a smaller object about 400 million years ago could have set into motion the series of events that formed Saturn’s iconic rings and altered both the planet’s wobble and the orbits of its moons. • The Saturn system is awash in mysteries. • Its rings seem to be younger than expected, the planet’s wobble isn’t tied to the motion of Neptune as simulations have suggested it ought to be, andits small moon Iapetushas a strangely tilted orbit. • Titan itself has strangely few craters and an oval, or eccentric, orbit. • Read moreWhy we must investigate Phobos, the solar system’s strangest object Read more Why we must investigate Phobos, the solar system’s strangest object A huge collision that created the Titan we see today could explain all of these elements.

Article Summaries:

  • Scientists propose that Saturn’s iconic rings and several orbital quirks arose from a massive collision between an early proto‑Titan and a smaller body, dubbed Chrysalis, about 400 million years ago. Simulations show the impact would erase Titan’s craters, shift its orbit to an ellipse, and generate a debris cloud that could have become the rings while destabilising the wobble of Saturn and the orbits of moons such as Iapetus. The event may also explain the young age of Hyperion. NASA’s Dragonfly mission, set to reach Titan in 2034, will examine surface features that could confirm or refute this collision hypothesis.
  • The story of Saturn, its rings and moons, may have started with its largest moon, Titan. A collision between an early proto-Titan and a smaller object about 400 million years ago could have set into motion the series of events that formed Saturn’s iconic rings and altered both the planet’s wobble and the orbits of its moons. The Saturn system is awash in mysteries. Its rings seem to be younger than expected, the planet’s wobble isn’t tied to the motion of Neptune as simulations have suggested it ought to be, and its small moon Iapetus has a strangely tilted orbit. Titan itself has strangely fe

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