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Astronomy Picture of the Day - The Images not Posted during the Government Shutdown - Saturn at Night
NASA ^ | 24 Oct, 2025 | Image Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech, Space Science Institute, Mindaugas Macijauskas

Posted on 12/09/2025 9:38:48 AM PST by 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.


TOPICS: Astronomy; Science
KEYWORDS: apod; nasa
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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.

1 posted on 12/09/2025 9:38:48 AM PST by MtnClimber
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To: MtnClimber

2 posted on 12/09/2025 9:39:22 AM PST by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: 21stCenturion; 21twelve; 4everontheRight; A Navy Vet; A_perfect_lady; abb; AFB-XYZ; AFPhys; ...
Pinging the APOD list

🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔

3 posted on 12/09/2025 9:40:24 AM PST by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: MtnClimber

4 posted on 12/09/2025 9:44:25 AM PST by Diogenesis (Si vis pacem, para bellum)
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To: Diogenesis

Looks like a fake AI generated image.

Still cool looking though


5 posted on 12/09/2025 9:45:18 AM PST by algore
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To: Diogenesis

[above]: The full set of rings, imaged on July 19, 2013,
as Saturn eclipses the Sun from the vantage of the Cassini orbiter,
1.2 million kilometres (3⁄4 million miles) distant.
Earth appears as a dot at 4 o’clock, between the G and E rings
– with its brightness artificially exaggerated in this photograph.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rings_of_Saturn


6 posted on 12/09/2025 9:46:33 AM PST by Diogenesis (Si vis pacem, para bellum)
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To: algore

I have some Nice original 8x10 glossy photographs from the Voyager flybys in the 80s, I will have to dig them out


7 posted on 12/09/2025 9:47:57 AM PST by algore
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To: MtnClimber

Night is usually the best time to see Saturn.


8 posted on 12/09/2025 10:35:30 AM PST by Verginius Rufus
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To: MtnClimber

Oh...Saturn’s night side. I thought it meant OUR night! ‘Cause you can’t see in the daytime!


9 posted on 12/09/2025 11:03:36 AM PST by JimRed (TERM LIMITS, NOW! Finish the damned WALL! TRUTH is the new HATE SPEECH! )
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To: MtnClimber
Remember when the SciFi channel used Saturn as its badge?
10 posted on 12/09/2025 11:55:23 AM PST by NavyShoe
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To: MtnClimber

From the earliest close-ups of Saturn that I’ve ever seen. something about it has always looked ominous and foreboding.


11 posted on 12/09/2025 11:55:33 AM PST by AFB-XYZ (( We have two options: 1. Stand up, or 2. Bend over))
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To: MtnClimber

Wow.


12 posted on 12/09/2025 11:58:29 AM PST by No name given ( Anonymous is who you’ll know me as )
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To: Diogenesis

Awesome.


13 posted on 12/09/2025 11:59:41 AM PST by No name given ( Anonymous is who you’ll know me as )
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To: MtnClimber
Is Saturn a real gas-gas giant, or is ALL the hydrogen and helium a frozen solid?
14 posted on 12/09/2025 12:29:52 PM PST by zeestephen (Trump Landslide? Kamala lost the election by 230,000 votes, in WI, MI, and PA.)
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To: zeestephen

15 posted on 12/09/2025 2:10:56 PM PST by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: Diogenesis

So cool….


16 posted on 12/09/2025 3:39:31 PM PST by telescope115 (Ad Astra, Ad Deum…)
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