Categories: Saturn

Saturn’s Rings in Blue

I thought I’d highlight this recent Cassini image of Saturn, it’s just so cool looking. What you’re seeing is a view of Saturn from high above the planet’s northern latitudes, providing nearly a full view of the main rings, from the C ring to the A ring.

Why are the rings blue? Cassini captured this image in three different wavelengths of infrared light, and then they were matched on computer to the colours red, green and blue. So, this isn’t what you’d see with your eyes, but it helps reveal subtle differences on the planet and its rings.

The image was captured on April 5, 2007 when Cassini was approximately 1.4 million kilometers (900,000 miles) from Saturn.

Original Source: NASA/JPL/SSI News Release

Fraser Cain

Fraser Cain is the publisher of Universe Today. He's also the co-host of Astronomy Cast with Dr. Pamela Gay. Here's a link to my Mastodon account.

Recent Posts

A Space Walking Robot Could Build a Giant Telescope in Space

The Hubble Space Telescope was carried to space inside the space shuttle Discovery and then…

19 hours ago

New Report Details What Happened to the Arecibo Observatory

In 1963, the Arecibo Observatory became operational on the island of Puerto Rico. Measuring 305…

2 days ago

We Understand Rotating Black Holes Even Less Than We Thought

The theory of black holes has several mathematical oddities. Recent research shows our understanding of…

2 days ago

Habitable Worlds are Found in Safe Places

When we think of exoplanets that may be able to support life, we hone in…

2 days ago

New Glenn Booster Moves to Launch Complex 36

Nine years ago, Blue Origin revealed the plans for their New Glenn rocket, a heavy-lift…

2 days ago

How Many Additional Exoplanets are in Known Systems?

NASA's TESS mission has turned up thousands of exoplanet candidates in almost as many different…

2 days ago