SCIENCE · VERIFIED DEVELOPMENT
Saturn Reveals New Decagonal Weather Pattern at South Pole
WHY IT MATTERS
By providing a rare, large‑scale polygonal storm, the decagon offers a natural laboratory for testing atmospheric wave theory and will guide targeted observations with the James Webb Space Telescope.
What happened
Scientists using images from the Hubble Space Telescope have confirmed a new, ten‑sided weather pattern at Saturn’s south pole. The decagon, about 13,000 km across—slightly wider than Earth—shows sharply defined sides formed by powerful winds in a jet stream.
First spotted by amateur astronomers in 2024, the feature was verified with Hubble data from 2023‑2025. Its appearance may be linked to a large nearby storm, though the exact mechanism remains unclear.
The pattern differs from the long‑standing hexagon at the north pole and is the first polygonal weather system seen on any planet other than Earth. Researchers plan to monitor the decagon with the James Webb Space Telescope and other observatories.
PRIMARY SOURCES
Saturn has a big, weird decagon around its south pole
New Scientist · Jonathan O’Callaghan · Discovery and factual synthesis only; publisher copyright and subscription terms apply