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A solar eclipse. On Saturn. By Titan. Photographed from Earth. 📷: AJ Smadi (StardustAstro/Correct_Presence_936)

This eclipse only occurs every (approximately) fourteen and a half years, or half the orbital period of Saturn. When those eclipses can happen they only actually take place every 16 days or so, which translates to about 20 such events every 14–15 years. Reddit link: www.reddit.com/r/spaceporn/...

26/7/26, 6:06 pm4 reposts57 likes

Bill Higgins-- Beam Jockey

@beamjockey.bsky.social

26 July

How often does Titan move into Saturn’s shadow? Where can I find this out? Relevant to audience question in my Dragonfly talk, worried that D would need to land on Titan’s anti-Saturn side (it won’t) else Saturn would block D’s view of Earth & Sun (it won’t, at least not very often). 🟠🚁

🧡🍉 Achey Breaky Badger

@mysicksadlife.bsky.social

27 July

I think this is the answer you want: astronomynow.com/2025/10/03/s... Every 16 days, but for it to be visible from Earth, multiple astronomical bodies need to be in alignment

astronomynow.comSee Titan’s shadow transit Saturn – next chance 2038! – Astronomy Now

Bill Higgins-- Beam Jockey

@beamjockey.bsky.social

27 July

Thank you. Now that I've looked up some numbers, Saturn's orbit of the Sun is nearly in the ecliptic, 2.45°. Titan's orbit of Saturn is almost perfectly in the plane of Saturn's equator. BUT Saturn's equator is tilted 26.7° to its solar orbit! So it will be rare that Saturn shadows Titan.

Bill Higgins-- Beam Jockey

@beamjockey.bsky.social

27 July

And, as the article @mysicksadlife.bsky.social linked to explains, it will be rare that Titan shadows Saturn. Moving along its tilted orbit, Titan needs to be crossing the plane of Saturn's orbit in a way such that Titan, Saturn, and the Sun form a line.