In the Center of Saturns North Polar Vortex
Explanation:
What's happening at the north pole of Saturn?
A vortex
of strange and complex swirling clouds.
The center of this vortex was
imaged in unprecedented detail last week by the robotic
Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn.
These clouds lie at the center of the unusual
hexagonal cloud system that surrounds the north pole
of Saturn.
Saturn's north pole precessed into sunlight just a few years ago, with Cassini taking
only
infrared images of the shadowed region previously.
The
above image is raw and
unprocessed
and is being prepared for release in 2013.
Several
similar images of the region have recently been condensed into a
movie.
Planetary scientists are sure to continue to study this most
unusual cloud formation for quite some time.
Astrophysicists:
Code sharing meeting in January
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
