Astronomy Picture of the Day - Saturn at Night

NASA ^ | 2 Nov, 2024 | Image Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech, Space Science Institute, Mindaugas Macijauskas

[MtnClimber]

Explanation: Saturn is bright in Earth's night skies. Telescopic views of the outer gas giant planet and its beautiful rings often make it a star at star parties. But this stunning view of Saturn's rings and night side just isn't possible from telescopes in the vicinity of planet Earth. Peering out from the inner Solar System they can only bring Saturn's day side into view. In fact, this image of Saturn's slender sunlit crescent with night's shadow cast across its broad and complex ring system was captured by the Cassini spacecraft. A robot spacecraft from planet Earth, Cassini called Saturn orbit home for 13 years before it was directed to dive into the atmosphere of the gas giant on September 15, 2017. This magnificent mosaic is composed of frames recorded by Cassini's wide-angle camera only two days before its grand final plunge. Saturn's night will not be seen again until another spaceship from Earth calls.

[MtnClimber]

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For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.

[MtnClimber]

[MtnClimber]

Pinging the APOD list

🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔

[No name given]

Wow.

[Larry Lucido]

It must be night time. Everything is dark.

[telescope115]

What’s really cool is that, at the NASA APOD page, if you can magnify the image, you can see at either side, the “f” ring. It’s really really thin and difficult to see unless you can magnify the image.

TOTALLY invisible in amateur telescopes.

[MtnClimber]

Not the normal cheeseburger. This looks like a meatball on a plate of Spaghetti. With cheese.

[dfwgator]

Saturn at night’s alright for fighting.

[Larry Lucido]

That’s bad. But good.

[MtnClimber]

Ha Ha :)