This global digital map of Saturn's moon Titan was created using images taken by the Cassini spacecraft's imaging science subsystem (ISS).
The images were taken using a filter centered at 938 nanometers, allowing researchers to examine variations in albedo (or inherent brightness) variations across the surface of Titan. Because of the scattering of light by Titan's dense atmosphere, no topographic shading is visible in these images.
The map is an equidistant projection and has a scale of 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) per pixel. Actual resolution varies greatly across the map, with the best coverage (close to the map scale) along the equator near the center of the map at 180 degrees west longitude and near the left and right edges at 0 and 360 degrees west longitude. The worst coverage is on the leading hemisphere (particularly around 120 degrees west longitude) and in some northern latitudes. Coverage in the northern polar region continues to improve as the north pole comes out of shadow after Titan's northern vernal equinox in August 2009. Large dark areas, now known to be liquid-hydrocarbon-filled lakes, have been documented at high latitudes (see PIA11146).
This map is an update to the version released in February 2009 (see PIA11149). Data from the last two years, including the most recent data in the map from April 2011, have improved coverage in the southern trailing hemisphere and over portions of the north polar region.
The mean radius of Titan used for projection of this map is 1,600 miles (2,575 kilometers). Titan is assumed to be spherical until a control network -- or model of the moon's shape based on multiple images tied together at defined points on the surface -- is created at some point in the future.
Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
A quartet of Saturn's moons, from tiny to huge, surround and are embedded within the planet's rings in this Cassini composition.
Saturn's largest moon, Titan, is in the background of the image, and the moon's north polar hood is clearly visible. See PIA08137 to learn more about that feature on Titan (3,200 miles, or 5,150 kilometers across). Next, the wispy terrain on the trailing hemisphere of Dione (698 miles, or 1,123 kilometers across) can be seen on that moon which appears just above the rings at the center of the image. See PIA10560 and PIA06163 to learn more about Dione's wisps. Saturn's small moon Pandora (50 miles, or 81 kilometers across) orbits beyond the rings on the right of the image. Finally, Pan (17 miles, or 28 kilometers across) can be seen in the Encke Gap of the A ring on the left of the image.
This view looks toward the northern, sunlit side of the rings from just above the ringplane.
The image was taken in visible blue light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on September 17, 2011. The view was obtained at a distance of approximately 1.3 million miles (2.1 million kilometers) from Dione and at a Sun-Dione-spacecraft, or phase, angle of 27 degrees. Image scale is 8 miles (13 kilometers) per pixel on Dione.
Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
The giant planet Saturn, as observed with the VLT NAOS-CONICA Adaptive Optics instrument on December 8, 2001; the distance was 1,209 million km. It is a composite of exposures in two near-infrared wavebands (H and K) and displays well the intricate, banded structure of the planetary atmosphere and the rings. Note also the dark spot at the south pole at the bottom of the image. One of the moons, Tethys, is visible as a small point of light below the planet. It was used to guide the telescope and to perform the adaptive optics "refocusing" for this observation. More details in the text.
This image of Saturn, the second-largest planet in the solar system, was obtained at a time when Saturn was close to summer solstice in the southern hemisphere. At this moment, the tilt of the rings was about as large as it can be, allowing the best possible view of the planet's South Pole. That area was on Saturn's night side in 1982 and could therefore not be photographed during the Voyager encounter. The dark spot close to the South Pole is a remarkable structure that measures approximately 300 km across. The bright spot close to the equator is the remnant of a giant storm in Saturn's extended atmosphere that has lasted more than 5 years.
The present photo provides what is possibly the sharpest view of the ring system ever achieved from a ground-based observatory. Many structures are visible, the most obvious being the main ring sections, the inner C-region (here comparatively dark), the middle B-region (here relatively bright) and the outer A-region, and also the obvious dark "divisions," including the well-known, broad Cassini division between the A- and B-regions, as well as the Encke division close to the external edge of the A-region and the Colombo division in the C-region. Moreover, many narrow rings can be seen at this high image resolution, in particular within the C-region.
Photo credit: ESO
A pair of Saturn's moons appears as if hung below the planet's rings in this Cassini spacecraft view.
Enceladus (313 miles, or 504 kilometers across) appears just below the rings here, near the center of the image. Tethys (660 miles, or 1,062 kilometers across) is near the bottom center of the image. Tethys is closer to Cassini than is Enceladus.
This view looks toward the northern, sunlit side of the rings from just above the ringplane.
The image was taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft wide-angle camera on September 13, 2011. The view was obtained at a distance of approximately 169,000 miles (272,000 kilometers) from Enceladus and at a Sun-Enceladus-spacecraft, or phase, angle of 135 degrees. The view was obtained at a distance of approximately 129,000 miles (208,000 kilometers) from Tethys and at a Sun-Tethys-spacecraft, or phase, angle of 135 degrees. Image scale is 10 miles (16 kilometers) per pixel on Enceladus and 7 miles (12 kilometers) per pixel on Tethys.
Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
NASA's Cassini spacecraft successfully completed its October 1 flyby of Saturn's moon Enceladus and its jets of water vapor and ice. At its closest approach, the spacecraft flew approximately 62 miles (100 kilometers) above the moon's surface. The close approach was designed to give some of Cassini's instruments, including the ion and neutral mass spectrometer, the chance to "taste" the jets themselves.
At a higher vantage point during the encounter, Cassini's high-resolution camera captured pictures of the jets emanating from the moon's south polar region. The latest raw images of Enceladus are online at: http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/photos/raw/.
The images of the surface include previously seen leading-hemisphere terrain. However, during this encounter, multi-spectral imaging of these terrains extended farther into the ultraviolet region of the electromagnetic spectrum than had previously been achieved at this resolution. By looking at the surface at ultraviolet wavelengths, scientists can better detect the difference between surface materials and shadows than they can at visible wavelengths, where icy materials are highly reflective and shadows are washed out. With both ultraviolet and visible images of the same terrain available to them, scientists will better understand how the surface coverage of icy particles coming from the vents and plumes changes with terrain type and age.
Cassini's next pass of this fascinating moon will be October 19, when the spacecraft flies by at an altitude of approximately 765 miles (1231 kilometers).
Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
