Sheppard

The scientists who made the discovery, led by Scott Sheppard at the Carnegie Institute of Science in Washington, used the powerful Subaru telescope in Hawaii to gather data over several years, as well as new computing algorithms, to track potential moons and orbits.

Sheppard said the discovery of the moons can help scientists learn how planets in our solar system were formed.

"Studying the orbits of these moons can reveal their origins, as well as information about the conditions surrounding Saturn at the time of its formation," Sheppard said in a release from Carnegie on Monday.

Sheppard says there are likely more moons to be found around Saturn that are even smaller than the latest discoveries, but says astronomers will need larger telescopes to find them.

Back in 2014 Sheppard and his colleague Chad Trujillo at Northern Arizona University were the first scientists to theorize about the existence of a giant planet in the outer solar system that is now being called Planet 9.