Starship Asterisk*

I bought a widescreen computer monitor last night. Which led to the scenic dilemna of finding a good wallpaper wider than the 4:3 standard of most photos (or cropping*).

Hello Saturn!

I'm still marvelling over the awesomeness of this picture. It ranks right up there with the Earthrise photo Jim Lovell took on Apollo 8.


* Actually, I had to crop the sides off this photo to make it 16:10, but the rings all fit in still.

I put that picture in with my favorites. Earth is a dot at 10:00 in the rings. :)
Orin

It's breathtaking.

It's also one of a kind. Until Cassini, there was definitely no other opportunity for a picture like that.

I understand that one image also offers quite a bit of possible scientific understanding, with Saturn in shadow leaving features visible in infrared and sunlight filtering through the atmosphere being difracted by the rings. Million dollar photo (give or take $1.2 billion).

And then to see earth framed in the rings like that... :shock:

That has to be my MOST favorite image of Saturn. New discoveries are always fascinating.

A different, more spectacular view of September 27 2006 APOD

Q: Can you find the Earth in this image?

[url]http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/Images/saturn_cas_lrg.jpg[/url]

A: Here

[url]http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17524[/url]