Pictures of the rings of Neptune
Neptune Home
Click on any picture to get a larger image of that picture.
A photograph of the rings of Neptune taken by the Voyager 2 spacecraft.
The two outer, main rings are easily seen on this photo. The inner ring - closer to Neptune - is much fainter. Many stars appear in the background. Notice the broad and faint ring between the two bright outermost rings. There does not appear to be any break in these rings.
Another picture of Neptune's rings by Voyager 2. Only the two brighter main rings are visible here. The photo above this one shows just how much the planet Neptune must be overexposed on a photo for these faint rings to be seen. Neptune's rings are not visible in telescopes on earth - the bright disk of Neptune makes it impossible to see.
Picture of Neptune's rings by Voyager 2. The rings of Neptune are complete - without breaks in their structure.
The two main rings are clearly visible - the inner faint ring is also visible. The large, overexposed spot is the planet Neptune. Notice the very faint, very broad rings stretching from the middle of the two outer rings, nearly up to Neptune. These broad rings are easy to see on the left-hand side of this photograph.
Picture of the two main rings of Neptune by Voyager.
The rings of Neptune are broken in places (at the top of the photo). In other places (at the bottom of the photo) material in these rings clump together.
The moon: 1989N2 is visible in the upper right-hand corner of this photograph.
Neptune's rings are called: the Adams Ring, the Leverrier Ring, Galle Ring, Lassell and the Arago Ring.
Some questions about these pictures of the planet Neptune's rings
Lets see what you have learned from these pictures ...
- Describe what the rings of Neptune look like. Which rings are bright and which rings are faint?
- Are Neptune's rings easy to see and photograph from Earth?
- Name some of Neptune's rings.
All images are courtesy NASA/JPL except where stated otherwise.
© Copyright 2001, 2002 - All Rights Reserved Worldwide
This page was last updated on: August 9, 2001
|
