Who discovered Saturn? Did the ancients know this planet or is modern science its first analyst?

The truth is that in the antiquity people had a far better knowledge of the sky map than we have today, and it is possible that they were familiar with Saturn by means of primitive telescopes. Most often, Galileo is recognized as the scientist who discovered Saturn in 1610, since in his descriptions he even wrote a theory about the rings. What he saw resembled some little ears on each side of the planet, and he thought they were globes. Yet, later on, the white rings were discovered and have remained the most spectacular scape in the solar system.

The analysis of the globes made by Galileo came into discussion because of a confusion he didn't know how to understand. He was the astronomer who discovered Saturn, but at the same time he thought there were three planets, not one. The clarification of the rings' presence was provided in 1655 when Christiaan Huygens realized that what Galileo referred to as globes were actually rings, but their structure became apparent twenty years later with the discovery made by Giovanni Domenico Cassini. He was the one to begin the theory that Saturn's rings were not solid or unitary but, consisting of fragments of different sizes.

Nowadays we know that the rings are made of ice, rocks and other interplanetary remains, which only proves that the early theories were right. Who discovered Saturn then? In conclusion, we have to admit that the discovery of the solar system has been in progress since we've started looking at the stars, and we are far from getting to the bottom. Every year seems to get something new for us to discover: and even if more than forty satellites have been discovered around Saturn, more remain hidden to our eyes for now. Thus the question is not about who discovered Saturn, but what surprises are there in stock for us?

The tribute paid to Galileo as the person who discovered Saturn is obvious, but he was not the only one. The probe which captured the the close image of Saturn for the first time was called Cassini after the astronomer who understood and theorized the pattern of the rings around this planet. Even so, thousands of people unknown to the public are presently involved in space programs; maybe their names are not known to history, but their contribution is just as great and relevant. With every step we take towards knowing our universe, we claim one more victory in the exploration of the unknown.