Saturn at Opposition 23rd May 2015

Composite of images taken with my Canon 600D DSLR and my QHY5v camera through my Meade 127mm refractor with a 2.5x Barlow lens. The small moon Mimas was just below Tethys when this image was taken but because of its proximity to Saturn was drowned by the planet's glare.

Each year I look forward to Saturn being at opposition, that is when Saturn is nearest to Earth and in the opposite direction to the Sun. Opposition for Saturn occurs every 378 days, some 13 days later each year. This year and from the UK, Saturn does not rise high above the horizon. I took these photographs from our backyard as the planet grazed the rooftops of my neighbours' houses.

Taking photographs of planets close to the horizon is much more difficult than when they are higher in the sky. The light has to travel through more of the earth's atmosphere, which can distort images, reduce light levels and separate colours acting much like a prism.

I noticed that the red giant star Antares could just be seen between two houses behind our home. I dont often get to see the constellation Scorpius from our backyard and I never get to see the Scorpion's sting!

This year Saturn's rings are tilted towards Earth so we see them in my images almost at maximum. The maximum will occur in 2017.  Saturn follows an elliptical orbit ,one orbit of the Sun taking a little under 29.5 earth years. During this time we see the rings from different angles. The rings were last edge on in 2009, sadly I had not started experimenting with astrophotography in those far off days although I did see this interesting phenomenen through the eyepiece!

The rings at opposition show a brightening known as the Seeliger Effect