Saturn - 2020 vs 2019 (Niall MacNeill)

Contains: Solar system body or event

Image of the day 02/12/2021

Saturn - 2020 vs 2019

Acquisition type: Lucky imaging

Image of the day 02/12/2021

Saturn - 2020 vs 2019

Acquisition type: Lucky imaging

This is a comparison of Saturn 2019 (8th May, 19:32 UT) with 2020 (31st July, 13:41 UT), which represent my two best captures from the respective years.

The differences are amazing.

Note the change in pitch of the rings, such that, as they are now narrowing, it is possible to see the south pole in the 2020 image and it happens to be a beautiful blue colour. You can also see the planet through the Cassini Division in this image :-D.

The Hexagonal Polar Vortex (HPV), so clear in the 2019 was less so in 2020 as the pole is pitched further away from us and the North Polar Region has changed colour from green to a brown-red colour, where the contrast with the HPV is lessened.

You can tell that the 2020 image was acquired soon after after opposition (July 20th) as the shadow of the planet on the rings is to the left and small, where the 2019 image was acquired two months before opposition (July 9th), so the shadow is large and to the right. Note that there is more structure in the atmosphere visible in the 2020 image.

It will be interesting to see what 2021 brings as the rings narrow further, the southern polar regions become more visible and the HPV is less apparent.

Please note: The following tables are updated every 24 hours.

Distribution of astrophotographers

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	Distinct awarded users	Total awarded images
Image of the day
Top picks
Top pick nominations

Distribution of subject types

This table shows the distribution of awards per subject type, compared to the popularity of images of that subject type.
	Image of the day	Top pick	Top pick nominations	Total submitted
Deep sky
Solar system
Extremely wide field
Star trails
Northern lights
Noctilucent clouds
Landscape

Distribution of data sources

This table shows the distribution of awards per data source, compared to the popularity of images acquired from that data source.
	Image of the day	Top pick	Top pick nominations	Total submitted
Backyard
Traveller
Own remote observatory
Amateur hosting facility
Public amaeteur data
Professional, scientific grade data
Mix of multiple sources
Other
Unknown

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Image of the day 02/12/2021

Saturn - 2020 vs 2019

Image of the day 02/12/2021

Saturn - 2020 vs 2019

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Image of the day 02/12/2021

Saturn - 2020 vs 2019

Image of the day 02/12/2021

Saturn - 2020 vs 2019

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