23rd November 2015. Saturn’s moon Tethys floating in the foreground of its parent planet. The moon is composed mainly of water ice, much like the rings of Saturn. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute)
Cassini's best images of Saturn and its moons
The NASA Cassini mission captured beautiful images of Saturn, its rings and its moons.
On 15 September 2017, NASA's Cassini spacecraft deorbited into Saturn, ending a 20-year mission that saw it study the ringed planet and Saturnian satellites up close.
Cassini flew through the gap between Saturn and its rings, landed a probe on its largest moon Titan and dove through watery outbursts erupting from through the cracks of the icy moon Enceladus.
Below is our pick of some of the best images of Saturn, its rings and its moons, captured by the Cassini mission.
Cassini's view of Saturn's moon Dione. Credit: NASA
A view of Saturn's moon Tethys, captured by the NASA Cassini mission. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
A landslide in the low-brightness region of Iapetus's surface known as Cassini Regio, as seen in an image captured by the Cassini spacecraft. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
A view of Saturn's moon Enceladus captured by the Cassini spacecraft on 28 June 2007. In the background can be seen the shadows of Saturn’s rings, cast on the planet’s cloud tops. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
A 2006 observation of Saturn's E ring by the Cassini spacecraft. The E ring is fed with icy particles via plumes erupting from the subsurface ocean of Saturn's icy moon Enceladus. The moon's shadow is seen as a dark dot within the ring. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
Composite infrared images of Cassini's moon Enceladus, revealing geologic activity. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/LPG/CNRS/University of Nantes/Space Science Institute
The Cassini spacecraft's view of Saturn during the planet's equinox in 2009. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
A view of Saturn's rings captured by the Cassini spacecraft. Credit: Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
A view of Saturn captured by the Cassini spacecraft on 2 January 2010 from about 2.3 million km away. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
Tiger stripes on Enceladus, as seen by the Cassini spacecraft. Credit: NASA, ESA, JPL, SSI, Cassini Imaging Team
Unprocessed Cassini images show features in Saturn's atmosphere closer than ever before.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
An image of Titan captured by the Cassini spacecraft on July 2009. The bright spot at the top of Titan’s disc is sunlight reflecting off the surface of a hydrocarbon lake. Dragonfly will explore these pools of liquid to search for conditions suitable for the development of life. Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona/DLR
Moon Titan appears in front of Saturn in an image captured by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
Cassini takes a last look at Saturn's moon Titan on 21 April, before manoeuvring to begin its series of ring dives on 26 April.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
19th July 2013. Rare image of Earth from over 1.4 billion kilometers away, showing us as a tiny spec of dot in the vast openness of space. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute)
Saturn's moon Mimas, as seen by the Cassini spacecraft. Credit: NASA
A view of Saturn, captured by the Cassini spacecraft.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
The whole northern region is bathed in sunlight in this view from late 2016, takenm by Cassini. Image Credit: NASA
Cassini took many images of Titan over its 13 year mission at Saturn. The mission ended on 15 September 2017, when it plunged into Saturn’s atmosphere, but it’s data is still providing scientific insight. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASI
Cassini spacecraft, 9 August 2016
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Kevin M. Gill
Sunlight reflects off Titan's northern seas in this image taken by the Cassini spacecraft.
Credits: NASA/JPL/Univ. Arizona/Univ. Idaho
A view of the northern hemisphere of Saturn in 2016, as it nears its summer solstice in May 2017. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science InstituteCredit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
Plumes of water ice and vapour spray from the south polar region of Saturn's moon Enceladus. The presence of water on the moon means that scientists cannot risk the Cassini orbiter contaminating its surface.
Credits: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
Cassini captured this image of the moon Daphnis orbiting within the 42km Keeler Gap. The waves in the edges of the gap are caused by the moon’s gravitational pull.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
