- Original Caption Released with Image:
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Voyager 1 has found a 15th moon orbiting Saturn, visible near the
bottom of this picture taken on Nov. 6, 1980, when the spacecraft
was still 8 million kilometers (5 million miles) from Saturn. Voyager imaging
team scientists discovered the moon Nov. 7, 1980, in the first of several
programmed searches for new satellites of Saturn. The unique location of
the 15th satellite, just 800 kilometers (500 miles) outside the outer edge of
the A-ring, is especially significant in that this small body, approximately 100
kilometers (50 miles) in diameter, may be responsible for defining the outer
edge of Saturn's bright ring system. The orbital period of the new satellite is
approximately 14 hours, 20 minutes, the shortest orbit of any of Saturn's
known satellites. The very narrow F-ring, approximately 4,000 kilometers
(2,500 miles) outside the outer edge of the A-ring, is seen prominently in this
picture. The Voyager Project is managed for NASA by the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
- Image Credit:
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NASA/JPL
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