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What are the two bright objects near Saturn (not the rings) that I see in my telescope?

I'm not sure whether these objects are moons or stars. I'm pretty sure they're moons, though, because they don't seem to be point-like. How can I differentiate between background stars and moons, and if the objects are moons, which moons are they?

Thanks!

Update:

8" Dobsonian scope with 187x magnification

3 Answers

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  • 1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    Adam,

    They are most likely the moons of Saturn. Here s a list of the 8 brightest moons which you should beable to see in that scope. BTW, one sure way to recognize them as moons is to observe them over time. You should actually be able to see them move in an arc that suggests they are orbiting Saturn (over the space of about an hour ... even less really). If not then they're most likely Stars. Saturn is near a few galaxies right now but from your location I doubt your seeing them. You need much darker skies to see those galaxies.

    ID Mag PA(°) Sep (") Name

    I 12.8 304 2.9 Mimas

    II 11.6 142 3.0 Enceladus

    III 10.1 264 37.5 Tethys

    IV 10.3 263 51.1 Dione

    V 9.6 274 37.4 Rhea

    VI 8.3 50 23.0 Titan

    VII 14.2 92 138.1 Hyperion

    VIII 11.0 315 160.3 Iapetus

  • 1 decade ago

    Good answer from B,

    What Moons would depend on the time viewed.

    Wally

  • B.
    Lv 7
    1 decade ago

    http://www.stellarium.org/

    This is a great FREE star chart that you can download. Tell it where you are and it will tell you what you see. This star chart will tell you exactly what the two objects are that you ask about. I hope that this helps you.

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