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hor_green_bar1.jpg Pan hor_green_bar1.jpg


Pan is indicated by the green arrow - copyright Calvin J. HamiltonPan is the innermost satellite of Saturn and was discovered by Mark R. Showalter in 1990. It is so close to Saturn that it actually orbits inside the Encke Gap of the A-ring. It is one of the shepherd satellites and so keeps the Encke Gap open.



PHYSICAL DATA FOR PAN
 Mass (kg)
 Mass (Earth = 1)
 Radius (km) 9.655
 Radius (Earth = 1) 1.5138e - 03
 Mean Density (g/cm3)
 Mean Distance from Saturn (km) 133,583
 Magnitude (V0)



ORBITAL DATA FOR PAN
 Rotational period (days)
 Orbital period (days) 0.5750
 Mean orbital velocity (km/s) 16.90
 Orbital eccentricity 0.00
 Orbital inclination (degrees) 0.0
 Escape (km/s)
 Albedo 0.5



Physical Data Key
Mass Mass
Mass Mass compared to that of Earth.
Radius Radius
Radius Radius compared to that of Earth.
Mean Density Average Density.
Distance Distance to the planet's center.
Magnitude The brightness of a star or object.
Orbital Data Key
Rotational Period Number of days to make one complete rotation.
Orbital Period Number of days to obital the planet.
Mean Orbital Velocity Average obital speed.
Orbital Eccentricity Eccentricity.
Orbital Inclination The tilt of the moon or planet.
Escape Escape Velocity.
Albedo Visual geometric albedo.




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