D-RING C-RING B-RING “SPOKE” CASSINI DIVISION ENCKE DIVISION A-RING F-RING [Illustration: 11/8/80 6 million km (3.7 million mi) The Cassini Division is filled with numerous ringlets. Discovered by Cassini in 1675, this area between the A- and B-Rings had long been thought devoid of material. The Voyager observation of well-defined rings within the Cassini Division was an unexpected discovery.] [Illustration: 11/12/80 740,000 km (460,000 mi) Saturn’s ring system, viewed from below, appears dramatically different from its appearance on the sunlit side. This computer-processed image shows the F-Ring circling outside the A-Ring, the A-Ring with its Encke Division, the multiple ringlets in the Cassini Division, and the optically thick B-Ring, seen here in magenta hues (the coloration is an artifact of processing and is not real). The B-Ring appears dark from below the ring plane because it is dense enough to reflect most of the sunlight, causing it to appear very bright when seen from the sunward side. The opaline brightness of the Cassini Division here indicates a great deal of sunlight being scattered through this region. The Encke Division may really be empty, since it appears dark from both above and below.] [Illustration: 11/12/80 720,000 km (450,000 mi) Outbound and above the ring plane, Voyager 1 gave us this view of Saturn’s rings eight hours after its closest approach to the planet. The unique lighting accentuates the many hundreds of bright and dark ringlets comprising the ring system. The C-Ring (dark gray area) seems to blend into the brighter B-Ring as the concentric features radiate out from the planet. The dark spoke-like features seen in images taken during the approach to Saturn now appear as bright streaks, indicating that they may be composed of small particles.] [Illustration: 11/12/80 750,000 km (470,000 mi) Two narrow, braided rings in the F-Ring are evident in this view, as well as a broader, very diffuse component about 35 kilometers (20 miles) across. A totally unexpected discovery, the braided rings trace distinctly separate orbits intertwining each other. The “knots” may be local clumps of ring material or tiny moons. It is difficult to explain this complicated structure using only the gravitational forces known to be affecting the particles of this ring. It is possible that additional, electrostatic forces may also influence these particles.] [Illustration: 11/8/80 7 million km (4.3 million mi)