Thursday, September 6, 2018

Sept 6 - Saturn's Famous Hexagon

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Cassini spacecraft images were used to create this animation of Saturn’s northern polar hexagon. Image via NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI/Hampton University/ESA.
Good morning!

Saturn's famous hexagon towers above cloudtops
There's cool news about Saturn's north pole hexagon, which is as wide as 2 Earths – like nothing seen on any other world. The hexagon was thought to be a feature of the lower atmosphere, where Saturn’s weather happens. Now there’s evidence it extends to about 180 miles (300 km) above the cloudtops, into Saturn's stratosphere. Read more.
Hear the vibration of the sun
"It has a warmth to it. It's just enough where I can almost feel the sound on my skin." Hear it for yourself.
Neptune and Earth are closest today
By closest, we don't mean close. Neptune, the 8th planet outward from the sun, lodges in the outskirts of our solar system, approximately 2.7 billion miles (4.3 billion km) away. Read more.


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Saturn's famous hexagon towers above cloudtops
The Cassini spacecraft used its wide-angle camera to capture this image of the ringed planet Saturn on April 2, 2014. You can see Saturn’s hexagon - an odd six-sided feature - surrounding its circular north polar vortex. Image via NASA. Read the news about Saturn's hexagon.
A sun halo, sundogs and more
Haloes aren't uncommon, but this was a really beautiful display. Thanks to Martin Male, who captured it on Tuesday from Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. Which part is the halo, and which are the sundogsClick in to learn the names.
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