Saturn Cloud Decks



This is a diagram showing the locations of the cloud decks of Saturn.
Click on image for full size version (55K GIF)
Image from: Moons and Planets
There are three regions in Saturn's atmosphere, as shown in this picture, where clouds of a particular kind, or clouddecks, are to be found. There is a clouddeck of ammonia clouds, a clouddeck of ammonia hydrosulfide clouds, and a clouddeck of water clouds (H2O).

The location of the clouds is predicted based upon the temperature at which vapor will condense into droplets. The temperature at which the condensation occurs, according to the temperature profile shown in the figure by the black line, is where the clouds ought to be.

The diagram shows that the temperature in the troposphere goes from about -300 degrees (100 K) to about +80 degrees (300 K).

The first clouddeck, made of ammonia clouds is found at about 100 km below the tropopause, where the temperature becomes about 150 K. The second clouddeck, made of ammonium hydrosulfide clouds is found at about 170 km below the tropopause, where the temperature becomes about 200 K. And the third clouddeck, made of water clouds is found at about 130 km below the tropopause, where the temperature becomes about 270 K (freezing temperature for water).


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Saturn Cloud Decks



This is a diagram showing the locations of the cloud decks of Saturn.
Click on image for full size version (55K GIF)
Image from: Moons and Planets
There are three different layers of clouds, or clouddecks, in Saturn's atmosphere, as shown in this picture. The clouddecks are made of different molecules.

The first clouddeck is made of ammonia clouds. Ammonia is what you use to clean the kitchen sink, so you can imagine what clouds of ammonia might smell like!

The second clouddeck is made of ammonium hydrosulfide clouds, which is a combination of ammonia and sulfur! You can imagine what *that* smells like.

The third clouddeck is made of ordinary water clouds.


Return to Saturn's Atmosphere


Saturn's Clouds



This is a diagram showing the locations of the cloud decks of Saturn.
Click on image for full size version (55K GIF)
Image from: Moons and Planets
There are three different layers of clouds in Saturn's atmosphere, as shown in this picture.

The clouds are made of complex molecules such as water. Saturn's clouds are also made of ammonia which smells! Ammonia is what you use to clean the kitchen sink.


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Last modified April 3, 1997 by the Windows Team

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