Saturn's hexagon change in season. These changes were observed by the Cassini spacecraft. One hypothesis, developed at Oxford University, is that the hexagon forms where there is a steep latitudinal gradient in the speed of the atmospheric winds in Saturn's atmosphere. Similar regular shapes were created in the laboratory when a circular tank of liquid was rotated at different speeds at its centre and periphery. The most common shape was six sided, but shapes with three to eight sides were also produced. The shapes form in an area of turbulent flow between the two different rotating fluid bodies with dissimilar speeds. A
Saturn's hexagon Saturn's hexagon Saturn's hexagon is a persisting hexagonal cloud pattern around the north pole of Saturn, located at about 78°N. The sides of the hexagon are about long, which is more than the diameter of Earth (about ). The hexagon may be a bit greater than wide, may be high, and may be a jet stream made of atmospheric gases moving at . It rotates with a period of , the same period as Saturn's radio emissions from its interior. The hexagon does not shift in longitude like other clouds in the visible atmosphere. Saturn's hexagon was discovered during the