Saturn’s largest moon -Titan throws a colossal shadow in a breathtaking amateur portrait (photo)

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The amateur astronomer Efrain Morales captured a breathtaking picture of Titan’s shadow that swept on Saturn’s Cloud Tops during a rare transit event on July 18 this year.

Once every 15 years, Saturn’s rings are aligned with the earth and cancel the beginning of a spectacular series of shadow transitions, while the large moon titan fits between the cloud surface of the gas giant and our parent star. Even at a distance of 1.36 billion kilometers of 846 million miles, Titan’s shadow is so large that it can be seen from the earth with the correct telescopic equipment, which requires these transits for amateur astronomers.

Morales was able to capture such a shadow transit with a 12-inch aperture telescope in conjunction with a CMOS astronomy camera and peripheral imaging aids on July 18 (0913 GMT). The picture shows Titan’s great shadow, which darkens the massive cloud bands over the Saturn pegring system.

“That day I was lucky enough to have ideal conditions due to the Sahara dust in the Puerto Rico region, and I have accumulated several sessions for this big event,” said Morales in an e -mail to space.com.

Despite the phenomena, the moon, which is shown to the left of Saturn in Morales’ picture, is not at all Titan, but the smaller moon -thethys, which circled from the perspective of the earth at the time of the transit behind the gas giant. The amateur astrophotographer in the image of the transit using a series of red, green and blue astronomy filters to create a colorful view of the Saturnain system.

When is the next Titan Shadow Transit?

Stargazers get another five ways to sweep Titan’s shadow over Saturn’s Cloud Tops before the transit season comes to an end. The next shadow transit begins on August 3 at 2:25 a.m. (0625 GMT), with the final event occurring on October 6th.

It is possible to recognize Titan’s shadow demolition -Saturn with a telescope with an aperture of 4 inches at around 200 -compartment enlargement, although a larger area offers a much clearer view, according to the experienced meteorologist and Hayden Planetarier, lecturer Joe Rao.

“Larger instruments offer more illuminated fire functions and potentially better solution,” Rao told Space.com in an email. “An 8-inch telescope at 200 electricity or a 10-inch telescope with 250 power should offer a good view of the Titan’s shadow, especially on one night of good vision.”

Stargazers in the hope of experiencing a Titan Shadow Transit for yourself should read our summary of the best telescopes to explore the solar system. Astrophotographers who want to take their own unique pictures of the cosmos should check our leaders to the top cameras and lenses for astrophotography.

Note from the publisher: If you want to record a picture of a Titan Shadow Transit and share it with the readers of space.com, please send your photos, comments and your names and your place to Spacephotos@space.com.