Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute

Uploader comment: Saturn’s unusual appearance in this picture is a result of the planet being imaged via an infrared filter. Infrared images can help scientists determine the location of clouds in the planet’s atmosphere.  In this image, Cassini’s wide-angle camera used a filter which is especially sensitive to infrared wavelengths that are absorbed by methane.  Methane is not a major component of Saturn’s atmosphere, but enough of it is present to make a difference in how much light is reflected by different clouds. The darker areas reveal clouds that are lower in the atmosphere, therefore under more methane.