Astronomy Picture of the Day · March 17, 1996

Saturn's Cloud Tops

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for March 17, 1996 is “Saturn's Cloud Tops,” an image. It is credited to Credit: Voyager 1, JPL, NASA. The original explanation runs about 129 words.

From the explanation

“This close-up of the tops of Saturn ‘s clouds was taken by the Voyager 1 robot spacecraft as it passed the giant planet in November 1980. Saturn’s clouds are mostly composed of hydrogen and helium gas, but the small addition of other elements gives the clouds their colors.”

— APOD editors, March 17, 1996

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date: March 17, 1996
Type: Image
Credit: Credit: Voyager 1, JPL, NASA
Copyright: No copyright notice on the entry. Check the credited institution’s own usage rules before reusing it.
Explanation length: About 129 words

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Topics in this entry

Saturn

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: March 17 in other years

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Source

Astronomy Picture of the Day, March 17, 1996 — science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-1996-march-17-saturns-cloud-tops

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.