Astronomy Picture of the Day
Posted By admin On January 19, 2011 @ 10:57 am In Photo Essays | Comments Disabled
[1]
Saturn Storm
Credit: Cassini Imaging Team [2], SSI [3], JPL [4], ESA [5], NASA [6]; Color Composite: Jean-Luc Dauvergne [7]
Explanation: Late last year, a new, remarkably bright storm erupted [8] in Saturn’s northern hemisphere. Amateur astronomers [9] first spotted it in early December, with the ringed gas giant rising in planet Earth’s predawn sky. Orbiting Saturn [10], the Cassini spacecraft was able to record this close-up of the complex disturbance [11] from a distance of 1.8 million kilometers on December 24th. Over time, the storm has evolved [12], spreading substantially in longitude, and now stretches [13] far around the planet. Saturn’s [14] thin rings are also seen slicing across this space-based [15] view, casting broad shadows on the planet’s southern hemisphere.
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URL to article: http://www.berthoudrecorder.com/2011/01/19/astronomy-picture-of-the-day-2/
URLs in this post:
[1] Image: http://www.berthoudrecorder.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/saturnestorm_dauvergnecassini_c.jpg
[2] Cassini Imaging Team: http://ciclops.org/
[3] SSI: http://www.spacescience.org/
[4] JPL: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/
[5] ESA: http://www.esa.int/
[6] NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/
[7] Jean-Luc Dauvergne: http://astrophotography.fr/
[8] bright storm erupted: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/highlights/112507364.html
[9] Amateur astronomers: http://alpo-j.asahikawa-med.ac.jp/Latest/Saturn.htm
[10] Orbiting Saturn: http://www.ciclops.org/ir_index/133/In_Orbit
[11] complex disturbance: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2010/12/28/a-saturnian-storm-larger-than-worlds/
[12] has evolved: http://astrosurf.com/planetessaf/saturne/saturn_2010-NTrZ-storm.html
[13] now stretches: http://saturn.cstoneind.com/
[14] Saturn’s: http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Object=Saturn&Display=OverviewLong
[15] space-based: http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap071023.html
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