NASA's A.P.O.D.

Photo
 In the Shadow of Saturn   Image Credit:  Cassini Imaging Team,  SSI,  JPL,  ESA, NASA
 Explanation:  In the shadow of Saturn, unexpected wonders appear.  The  robotic Cassini spacecraft now orbiting  Saturn drifted in giant planet’s  shadow for about 12 hours in 2006 and looked back toward the  eclipsed Sun.    Cassini saw a  view unlike any other.    First, the  night side of Saturn is seen to be partly lit by light reflected from its own  majestic ring system.   Next, the rings themselves appear dark when  silhouetted against Saturn,  but quite bright when viewed away from Saturn, slightly scattering sunlight, in this  exaggerated color image.  Saturn’s rings light up so much that  new rings were discovered, although they are hard to see in the image.    Seen in spectacular detail, however, is Saturn’s  E ring, the ring created by the newly discovered  ice-fountains of the moon  Enceladus and the outermost ring visible above.    Far in the  distance,  at the left, just above the bright main rings, is the almost ignorable  pale blue dot of Earth. Zoom
In the Shadow of Saturn
Image Credit: Cassini Imaging Team, SSI, JPL, ESA, NASA

Explanation: In the shadow of Saturn, unexpected wonders appear. The robotic Cassini spacecraft now orbiting Saturn drifted in giant planet’s shadow for about 12 hours in 2006 and looked back toward the eclipsed Sun. Cassini saw a view unlike any other. First, the night side of Saturn is seen to be partly lit by light reflected from its own majestic ring system. Next, the rings themselves appear dark when silhouetted against Saturn, but quite bright when viewed away from Saturn, slightly scattering sunlight, in this exaggerated color image. Saturn’s rings light up so much that new rings were discovered, although they are hard to see in the image. Seen in spectacular detail, however, is Saturn’s E ring, the ring created by the newly discovered ice-fountains of the moon Enceladus and the outermost ring visible above. Far in the distance, at the left, just above the bright main rings, is the almost ignorable pale blue dot of Earth.

Posted on Sunday, September 4 2011. Tagged with: NASAspaceSaturnSaturn's ringsringseclipsesolar eclipseEarth
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NASA's A.P.O.D. NASA's Astronomy Picture Of The Day taken from http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/
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