Mimas against the northern latitudes of Saturn.
Original caption
Mimas drifts along in its orbit against the azure backdrop of Saturn's northern latitudes in this true color view. The long, dark lines on the atmosphere are shadows cast by the planet's rings.
Saturn's northern hemisphere is presently relatively cloud-free, and rays of sunlight take a long path through the atmosphere. This results in sunlight being scattered at shorter (bluer) wavelengths, thus giving the northernmost latitudes their bluish appearance at visible wavelengths.
At the bottom, craters on icy Mimas (398 kilometers, or 247 miles across) give the moon a dimpled appearance.
Images taken using infrared (930 nanometers), green (568 nanometers) and ultraviolet (338 nanometers) spectral filters were combined. The colors have been adjusted to match closely what the scene would look like in natural color. See PIA06142 for a similar view in natural color.
The images were obtained using the Cassini spacecraft narrow angle camera on Jan. 18, 2005, at a distance of approximately 1.4 million kilometers (870,000 miles) from Saturn. Resolution in the image is 8.5 kilometers (5.3 miles) per pixel on Saturn and 7.5 kilometers (4.7 miles) per pixel on Mimas. The image has been contrast-enhanced to aid visibility.
The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter and its two onboard cameras were designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The imaging team is based at the Space Science Institute, Boulder, Colo.
For more information about the Cassini-Huygens mission, visit <http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov> and the Cassini imaging team home page, <http://ciclops.org>.
Copyright status
This image is credited to NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Per JPL/NASA policy and applicable United States federal law, such images are in the public domain, or, if they are owned by individuals or institutions other than NASA or JPL, may be used for any journalistic, educational, or personal purpose (but not a commercial purpose) without further authorization. NASA and JPL images, other than their respective institutional logos, or photographs of actual persons, are not subject to copyright and may be used without additional permission, unless otherwise declared. For details, see the JPL Image Use Policy Declaration.
Source
NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute <http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/jpeg/PIA06176.jpg>
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| Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
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| current | 20:46, June 14, 2008 | | 889 × 1,012 (49 kilobytes) | TerryH (Talk | contribs) | Mimas against the northern latitudes of Saturn. == Original caption == Mimas drifts along in its orbit against the azure backdrop of Saturn's northern latitudes in this true color view. The long, dark lines on the atmosphere are shadows cast by the plane |
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