Earth as seen from Saturn
My favorite planet to view with a telescope is Saturn. Here's a picture of the Earth taken from Saturn. It was taken by NASA's Cassini spacecraft at a distance of 900 million miles. It is the furthest photo of Earth to-date.
Saturn is one of the most recognizable planets in our solar system due to its distinct rings. Here are some interesting facts about Saturn:
1. The rings of Saturn are not solid, but instead are made up of countless individual particles (mostly tiny pieces of ice and rock) that orbit the planet.
2. Saturn has the most extensive ring system of any planet in the solar system. The rings extend over 280,000 kilometers and are less than a kilometer thick.
3. Saturn has more than 80 moons, with the largest being Titan, which is the second-largest moon in the solar system after Ganymede, a moon of Jupiter.
4. Saturn's atmosphere is composed mostly of hydrogen and helium, with small amounts of other gases such as methane and ammonia.
5. Saturn rotates on its axis very quickly, completing one rotation in just over 10 hours, making it the fastest-spinning planet in our solar system.