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See Striking Black & White Photos of Saturn Captured by NASA’s Cassini

NASA's Cassini spacecraft spied details on the pockmarked surface of Saturn's moon Prometheus (86 kilometers, or 53 miles across) during a moderately close flyby on Dec. 6, 2015. This is one of Cassini's highest resolution views of Prometheus, along with PIA18186 and PIA12593.
Just 62 miles long, Saturn's little moon Prometheus is made mostly of ice with a studding of rock. It orbits on the inside of Saturn's F ring and its sister moon Pandora orbits on the outside. Together they gravitationally groom the ring, keeping its edges sharp. Cassini captured this image on Dec. 6, 2015. NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
Saturn's dynamic F ring contains many different types of features to keep scientists perplexed. In this image we see features ring scientists call "gores," to the right of the bright clump, and a "jet," to the left of the bright spot.Thanks to the ring's interaction with the moons Prometheus and Pandora, and perhaps a host of smaller moonlets hidden in its core, the F ring is a constantly changing structure, with features that form, fade and re-appear on timescales of hours to days.This view looks toward the unilluminated side of the rings from about 7 degrees below the ring plane. The image was taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on March 15, 2015.
Saturn's dynamic F ring backlit by the sun. The rings take on surprising textures, thanks to the eddies in their orbits and the interacting gravity of the small and large pieces of debris that make up the rings. In this image, features astronomers call gores and jets—which look pretty much as their names suggest—are visible. NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
Although Dione (near) and Enceladus (far) are composed of nearly the same materials, Enceladus has a considerably higher reflectivity than Dione. As a result, it appears brighter against the dark night sky.This view looks toward the leading hemisphere of Enceladus. North on Enceladus is up and rotated 1 degree to the right. The image was taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on Sept. 8, 2015.
The Saturnian moon Dione (near) is more than twice the size of Enceladus (far), though the perspective in this picture greatly exaggerates that difference. Of the two moons, Enceladus is the far more interesting body. Gravitationally squeezed by Saturn and the other passing moons, it gives off geysers of frost that trail behind it like the exhaust of a steamship. The icy crust of the planet is regularly resurfaced by the frost plumes, making it nearly as reflective as a mirror—with 99% of the light that reaches it bouncing back into space. Cassini took this picture on Sept. 8, 2015.NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
NASA's Cassini spacecraft captured this view of Saturn's moon Epimetheus (116 kilometers, or 72 miles across) during a moderately close flyby on Dec. 6, 2015. This is one of Cassini's highest resolution views of the small moon, along with PIA09813.
At just 74 miles long, Epimethus is one of Saturn's smallest moons, and it would be wholly unremarkable if it weren't for its relationship with its big sister moon, the 118-mile Janus. The two moons orbit within 31 miles of one another, with the one closer to Saturn moving slightly faster. Every 2,100 revolutions—about every four years—the tug of the leading moon flips the trailing one forward, and the two swap positions. Four years after, it happens again. This picture was taken on Dec. 6, 2015. NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
Tethys, dwarfed by the scale of Saturn and its rings, appears as an elegant crescent in this image taken by NASA's Cassini Spacecraft. Views like this are impossible from Earth, where we only see Saturn's moons as (more or less) fully illuminated disks.The region of Saturn seen at left is on the planet's night side. Reflected light from the rings dimly illuminates the planet's northern hemisphere.This view looks toward the anti-Saturn side of Tethys. North on Tethys is up and rotated 24 degrees to the left. The image was taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft wide-angle camera on Aug. 18, 2015.
Saturn is all about geometry—an ever-changing juxtaposition of finely etched shapes. Here the 657-mile moon Tethys is seen in its crescent phase in the foreground, with the razor edge of Saturn's rings slicing through the frame and the bulk of Saturn itself in the background. NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute

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Write to Jeffrey Kluger at jeffrey.kluger@time.com