See Saturn at its best for 2025 this week

 Hey, Space Placers!

This is the week for the ringed planet, Saturn. It will be at its brightest this Sunday when directly opposite the Sun, known as opposition.

 Saturn is easy to find in the southeastern sky as it gets dark. If you have just about any telescope it will reveal the glorious rings. This is a cropped image taken with my Unistellar Odyssey Pro 3.5-inch telescope.

NASA is also studying Saturn using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and look this image June 25, 2023 - WOW!

The background is mostly dark. At the center is a dark orange-brownish circle, surrounded by several blazing bright, thick, horizontal whiteish rings. This is Saturn and its rings. There are three tiny organ-like dots in the image—one to the upper left of the planet, one to the direct left of the planet, and the lower left of the planet. They are labeled Dione, Enceladus, and Tethys. There is a slightly darker tint at the northern and southern poles of the planet. The rings surrounding Saturn are mostly broad, with a few singular narrow gaps between the broader rings. At the right side of the planet, labels are applied to the rings. The innermost, thicker ring is labeled “C ring.” Next to that, a brighter, wider ring is labeled “B ring.” Traveling farther outward, a small dark gap is labeled “Cassini division” before another thicker ring labeled “A ring.” Within the “A ring,” a narrow faint band is labeled “Encke gap.” The outermost, faintest, thinnest ring is labeled “F ring.”

Hopefully you, a friend or a local astronomy club/facility has a telescope to see the ringed wonder that is Saturn.

Sky Guy Greg

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