Planet Saturn & Ring Spoke Time-lapse Views | Hubble Space Telescope

Planet Saturn & Ring Spoke Time-lapse Views | Hubble Space Telescope

This Hubble Space Telescope time-lapse series of Saturn images (taken on October 22, 2023) resolves a phenomenon called ring spokes appearing on both sides of the planet simultaneously as they spin around the giant world. The video zooms into one set of spokes on the morning (left) side of the rings. The spokes are transient features that rotate along the ring plane. The spokes may be a product of electrostatic forces generated by the interaction of the planet's magnetic field with the solar wind. This interaction levitates dust or ice above the ring to form the spokes.

Credit: NASA, European Space Agency, Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI), A. Simon (NASA-GSFC), J. DePasquale (STScI)

Duration: 40 seconds

Release Date: Dec. 15, 2023

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