Monday, April 20, 2009

Cassini and Saturn

[Cassini peers through the fine, smoke-sized ice particles of Saturn's F ring toward the cratered face of Mimas]

NASA's Cassini spacecraft is now a nearly a year into its extended mission, called Cassini Equinox. The craft has been taking and sending some of the most amazing space photographs I have ever seen.

The Boston Globe has a nice collection (as always) of large photos from the mission:

[Saturn's high north is a seething cauldron of activity filled with roiling cloud bands and swirling vortices. A corner of the north polar hexagon is seen at upper left.]