Astronomers find 20 new moons around Saturn and you can help name them

CNN — The discovery of 20 previously unknown moons around Saturn has helped the ring planet surpass all others in our solar system, according to the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center. “They play a crucial role in helping us determine how our Solar System’s planets formed and evolved.” Courtesy Scott Sheppard/Carnegie Institute of Science Two of the moons with a pro-grade orbit, or one moving in the same direction as the planet, complete a single orbit of Saturn every two years. “The fact that these newly discovered moons were able to continue orbiting Saturn after their parent moons broke apart indicates that these collisions occurred after the planet formation process was mostly complete and the disks were no longer a factor.” Wanna name one of Saturn’s moons? “I was so thrilled with the amount of public engagement over the Jupiter moon-naming contest that we’ve decided to do another one to name these newly discovered Saturnian moons,” Sheppard said.