Neon Saturn

Uznání: VIMS Team, U. Arizona, ESA, NASA

Ve správném světle Saturn svítí jako neonová reklama. Ačkoliv má Saturn neonu poměrně málo, tak složený obraz ve falešných barvách ve třech pásmech infračerveného světla zvýrazňuje útvary na obří planetě s prstenci jako nějakou zářivou reklamu. At the most blue band of the infrared light featured, false-colored blue in the above image, Saturn itself appears dark but Saturn's thin rings brightly reflect light from our Sun. Conversely, Saturn's B ring is so thick that little reflected light makes it through, creating a dark band between Saturn's A and C rings. At the most red band of the infrared, false-colored red above, Saturn emits a surprisingly detailed thermal glow, indicating planet-wide bands, huge hurricane-like storms, and a strange hexagon-shaped cloud system around the North Pole. In the middle infrared band, false-colored green, the sunlit side of Saturn's atmosphere reflects brightly. The above image was obtained in late February by the robotic Cassini spacecraft orbiting about 1.6 million kilometers out from Saturn.