Description
The three separate components of Saturn's F-ring are seen in this image taken by NASA's Voyager l on Nov. 12, 1980, from a range of 750,000 kilometers (466,000) miles. Two prominent bright strands appear twisted and kinked, while the fainter, innermost third strand largely lacks such non-uniformities. The kinking appearance of the ring may be caused by the gravitational perturbations of two nearby satellites -- S-13 on the outside and S-14 on the inside -- or the effect may be caused by electromagnetic forces upon small F-ring particles. The Voyager project is managed for NASA by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
