PIA00025: Saturn - False Color of Southern Hemisphere


Saturn - False Color of Southern Hemisphere

Caption:

This false-color image of Saturn's southern hemisphere taken by NASA's Voyager 1 on Nov. 6, 1980, shows the unique red oval cloud feature located at 55 degrees south latitude. The photograph was taken by the spacecraft at a distance of 8,500,000 kilometers (5,300,000 miles) from Saturn. The difference in color between the red oval and surrounding bluish clouds indicates that material within the oval contains a substance that absorbs more blue and violet light than the bluish clouds. Voyager imaging team scientists first observed the oval in August 1980, and the feature has seemed to retain its appearance since its discovery.

Background Info:

The Voyager Project is managed for NASA by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

Cataloging Keywords:

Name Value Additional Values
Target Saturn
System Saturn
Target Type Planet
Mission Voyager
Instrument Host Voyager 1
Host Type Flyby Spacecraft
Instrument
Detector
Extra Keywords Color
Acquisition Date
Release Date 1996-01-29
Date in Caption 1980-11-06
Image Credit NASA/JPL
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA00025
Identifier PIA00025