Fig. 7

Saturn’s global color map created using global maps at red, green, and blue wavelengths. The global maps at the red, green, and blue channels are based on ISS images recorded with the RED (647 nm), GRN (568 nm), and BL1 (463 nm) filters, respectively. Each global map consists of 5 ISS images captured on August 11, 2011, with a spatial resolution of ~161 km/pixel and a time separation of ~2.1 hours. Due to the unavailability of RGB images near the Northern Spring Equinox for maximizing global coverage, we selected these RGB images as they can make the global color map with the best spatial coverage among all Cassini RGB images. The selected images were taken at a sub-solar latitude of 10.7°N and a sub-Cassini latitude of 0.2°N. The relatively large sub-solar latitude (10.7°N) results in the shadow cast by the rings covering a latitude band of ~5–15°S (visible as the wide black area near the equator in the Southern Hemisphere). Conversely, the small sub-Cassini latitude (0.2°N) makes that the rings only obstruct a very narrow latitude band around the equator (illustrated by the thin black line). The black regions in the polar regions indicate observational gaps.