Hum Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 Saturn's southern reaches are draped in the shadow of the huge planet's iconic ring system in a spectacular new picture from NASA's Cassini spacecraft. The near-infrared photo, which Cassini snapped on June 15, looks toward the southern, unlit side of Saturn's rings from 14 degrees below the ringplane, researchers said. The spacecraft was about 1.8 million miles (2.9 million kilometers) from Saturn at the time; the image scale is 11 miles (17 km) per pixel. Saturn's ice-covered moon Enceladus, which is 313 miles (504 km) wide, is visible as a tiny, bright speck in the lower lefthand corner of the image. Many researchers regard Enceladus as one of the best bets in our solar system to host life beyond Earth. Though surface temperatures on the moon are frigid, Enceladus is believed to harbor a vast ocean of liquid water beneath its icy shell. Enceladus also boasts huge amounts of internal heat, which power a system of geysers that erupt from the moon's south polar regions. more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Growled Member Posted September 30, 2012 Member Share Posted September 30, 2012 That is gorgeous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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