Quantcast
ZME Science
  • CoronavirusNEW
  • News
  • Environment
    • Climate
    • Animals
    • Renewable Energy
    • Eco tips
    • Environmental Issues
    • Green Living
  • Health
    • Alternative Medicine
    • Anatomy
    • Diseases
    • Genetics
    • Mind & Brain
    • Nutrition
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
    • Feature Post
    • Art
    • Great Pics
    • Design
    • Fossil Friday
    • AstroPicture
    • GeoPicture
    • Did you know?
    • Offbeat
  • More
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Our stance on climate change
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
Home Science News

Cassini’s farewell photo of Saturn’s dark side

An eerily view of Saturn.

Tibi Puiu by Tibi Puiu
October 3, 2017
in News, Space
ADVERTISEMENT
goodbye-cassini
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute

Last month, the formidable Cassini spacecraft ended its 20-year-mission with a nose dive into Saturn’s atmosphere. NASA’s Cassini-Huygens mission launched in 1997 and took seven years to reach its destination around Saturn and its 53 moons. Over the course of its long mission, Cassini’s achievements were legion. Besides landing a freaking probe on Titan, a methane-filled world similar to the early days of Earth before life evolved, Cassini made the most planetary flybys any man-made craft ever has — over 100. Before arriving in Saturn’s orbit, Cassini circled Earth, Venus, and Jupiter.

It was over the course of these flybys that Cassini took some of the most breath-taking pictures of Saturn. Now, NASA has another one worthy of Cassini’s ‘best of’ collection — a unique view of Saturn’s dark side.

Because Earth orbits much closer to the sun than Saturn, ground-based telescopes were never able to observe the gas giant’s dark side. As such, this image would have never been possible were it not for the Cassini spacecraft.

ADVERTISEMENT

The picture was taken on 7 June 2017, with the spacecraft’s onboard wide-angle camera. At the time, Cassini was about 1.21 million kilometers from Saturn, facing the sun-lit side of the rings seven degrees above the plane of rings.

Get more science news like this...

Join the ZME newsletter for amazing science news, features, and exclusive scoops. More than 40,000 subscribers can't be wrong.

   

Though the spacecraft itself is toast, the mission will live on for many years. During its 20-year trip, Cassini has beamed back a trove of data and images which will keep scientists busy for a long time. Perhaps, the mission’s most important contributions to science are still a work in progress.

Tags: cassinisaturn
Tibi Puiu

Tibi Puiu

Tibi is a science journalist and co-founder of ZME Science. He writes mainly about emerging tech, physics, climate, and space. In his spare time, Tibi likes to make weird music on his computer and groom felines.

Follow ZME on social media

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
  • Coronavirus
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
  • More

© 2007-2019 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Coronavirus
  • News
  • Environment
    • Climate
    • Animals
    • Renewable Energy
    • Eco tips
    • Environmental Issues
    • Green Living
  • Health
    • Alternative Medicine
    • Anatomy
    • Diseases
    • Genetics
    • Mind & Brain
    • Nutrition
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
    • Feature Post
    • Art
    • Great Pics
    • Design
    • Fossil Friday
    • AstroPicture
    • GeoPicture
    • Did you know?
    • Offbeat
  • More
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Our stance on climate change
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2019 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.