James Webb took a beautiful image of Saturn
(NASA/ESA/ CSA/STScI https://bit.ly/46tcp62)
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) took a color image of Saturn using the near-infrared NIRCam camera.
In addition to the planet itself, the image shows the four main rings of the planet, the gaps between them, as well as the satellites: Dion, Tethys and Enceladus.
The image was taken on June 25, 2023.
You can see the difference in brightness between the northern and southern hemispheres of Saturn.
This may be due to the difference in seasons - it is summer in the northern hemisphere, which may explain the very dark color of the north pole.
The edges of the planet's disk appear bright, which may be caused by high-altitude methane fluorescence, trihydrogen ion emission in the ionosphere, or both.
Spotting in the northern hemisphere may be associated with large-scale planetary waves in the stratosphere.
Sources:
- NASA: https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2023/06/30/saturns-rings-shine-in-webbs-observations-of-ringed-planet/
- Space.com: https://www.space.com/saturn-rings-james-webb-space-telescope-photo-june-2023
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