Four Years of Saturn

Saturn and its magnificent ring system can offer even casual astronomers the most memorable of telescopic sights. Wandering between Leo and Cancer this month , a bright Saturn is well placed for viewing in evening skies . But from our earthbound perspective, the tilt of Saturn's rings does change with time . In 1995 and 1996 the broad rings were edge-on and nearly invisible, gradually opening to a spectacular maximum tilt of about 27 degrees by 2003. This frame from a series of Saturn images beginning a year later, in 2004, and ending just last month shows the steady decrease in apparent tilt as the rings head toward another edge-on presentation in 2009. Saturn's south pole is toward the bottom. Click on the picture to view the sharp, color gif movie.