Today's Saturn Rings APOD

[MarkS]

Great APOD today. 
Don't read the description at first but try to work out for yourself exactly what you are seeing.

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap101012.html

[Tony G]

 

[Mike]

I've read the description and I'm still none the wiser.

[MarkS]

Agreed - description doesn't help much.

This link has a better explanation:
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2010/10/06/saturn-brain-bender/

This might help:
http://space.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/wspace?tbody=699&vbody=-82&month=9&day=2&year=2010&hour=16&minute=00&fovmul=1&rfov=30&bfov=50&showsc=1

[Mike]

That's better. I get it now.

[Tony G]

Thank Frak!

I thought it was just me as usual, that didn't understand it.

Tony G

[MarkS]

I got it wrong as well - I thought I was seeing ring shadows on Saturn's surface - maybe created by light reflecting off a moon.  Whereas, in fact, we are seeing the rings directly - silhouetted against the faint glow in Saturn's atmosphere.

[RobertM]

Yes, it took me a time to get the perspective right too.  Quite an intriguing image that one!