PIA11628: Scene Seen in the Near-Infrared
 Target Name:  S Rings
 Is a satellite of:  Saturn
 Mission:  Cassini-Huygens
 Spacecraft:  Cassini Orbiter
 Instrument:  ISS - Wide Angle
 Product Size:  1016 x 812 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  Cassini Imaging Team
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA11628.tif (826 kB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA11628.jpg (17.9 kB)


Original Caption Released with Image:


The large shadow south of the equator is that of the moon Tethys (1,062 kilometers, or 660 miles across). The small shadow near the limb of the planet, north of the equator, is the shadow of the moon Mimas (396 kilometers, or 246 miles across).

Saturn's northern and southern latitudes appear dark in this image because of the camera filter used. This view uses a spectral filter sensitive to absorption of certain wavelengths of light by methane in Saturn's atmosphere. The cloud tops in the northern and southern latitudes are at a slightly greater depth than in the equatorial region, and are underneath a layer of methane. This means that light travels along a longer path compared to the equatorial region as it enters the atmosphere, reflects off the cloud tops, and returns through the upper atmosphere to enter the camera. The light at near-infrared wavelengths thus passes through more light-absorbing methane at the northern and southern latitudes than at the equator, and so these latitudes are darker.





Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute

Image Addition Date: