File:Saturn's double aurorae (captured by the Hubble Space Telescope).jpg

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Summary

Image of Saturn and its polar aurorae from vertically above its equator in light of 115 and 125 nanometres of wavelength (ultraviolet light) taken by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009.

In January and March 2009, astronomers using NASA's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubble_Space_Telescope" class="extiw" title="en:Hubble Space Telescope">Hubble Space Telescope</a> took advantage of a rare opportunity to record <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturn" class="extiw" title="en:Saturn">Saturn</a> when its rings were edge-on, resulting in a unique movie featuring the nearly symmetrical light show at both of the giant planet's poles. It takes Saturn almost thirty years to orbit the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun" class="extiw" title="en:Sun">Sun</a>, with the opportunity to image both of its poles occurring only twice during that time.

The light shows, called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/aurora_(astronomy)" class="extiw" title="en:aurora (astronomy)">aurorae</a>, are produced when electrically charged particles race along the planet's magnetic field and into the upper atmosphere where they excite atmospheric gases, causing them to glow. Saturn's aurorae resemble the same phenomena that take place at the Earth's poles.

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Date/TimeThumbnailDimensionsUserComment
current06:25, 5 January 2017Thumbnail for version as of 06:25, 5 January 20171,024 × 1,024 (860 KB)127.0.0.1 (talk)Image of Saturn and its polar aurorae from vertically above its equator in light of 115 and 125 nanometres of wavelength (ultraviolet light) taken by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009. <p>In January and March 2009, astronomers using NASA's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubble_Space_Telescope" class="extiw" title="en:Hubble Space Telescope">Hubble Space Telescope</a> took advantage of a rare opportunity to record <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturn" class="extiw" title="en:Saturn">Saturn</a> when its rings were edge-on, resulting in a unique movie featuring the nearly symmetrical light show at both of the giant planet's poles. It takes Saturn almost thirty years to orbit the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun" class="extiw" title="en:Sun">Sun</a>, with the opportunity to image both of its poles occurring only twice during that time. </p> The light shows, called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/aurora_(astronomy)" class="extiw" title="en:aurora (astronomy)">aurorae</a>, are produced when electrically charged particles race along the planet's magnetic field and into the upper atmosphere where they excite atmospheric gases, causing them to glow. Saturn's aurorae resemble the same phenomena that take place at the Earth's poles.
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