Project: Saturn's Opposition Effect

Skip (Ian) · #1 26-03-2011, 10:23 AM

Hi.

I am hoping that you might be able to assist me in a project that I am coordinating for students at my school (St John's Anglican College, Brisbane). We are investigating the "opposition effect" of Saturn and we are keen to gather as many images and measurements of Saturn for about a month either side, and including, opposition on 4 April 2011.

We wish to see if the "opposition effect" (or cat's eye effect) is detectable this year. This is where the intensity of light off some surfaces increases dramatically when the light hits the surface and bounces straight back compared to other angles. We have heard about the effect but it has rarely been observed.

Images would be wonderful (with the time they were taken). We would like to calculate the intensity of light from the rings compared to the intensity of light from the planetary disk. We would like to plot the ratio of these over time. Could anyone help us with photometric data, please?

Regards Ian (Skip)

asimov (John) · #2 26-03-2011, 10:37 AM

As stated in my latest Saturn image thread, I'd be happy to contribute.

For what it's worth, the rings have brightened up considerably since my last image on March 1st.

Skip (Ian) · #3 26-03-2011, 11:27 AM

Thanks, Asimov.

If you could help provide some photos over a period of time, that would be helpful. Are you in a position to measure the brightness of the rings and planetary disk? We were hoping for some local assistance but we have had some equipment problems and poor weather last night.

Regards
Ian

PS. I have set up a discussion on the Amateur Science forum page, based on the suggestion of one of the administrators. (I'm new to blogs and IceInSpace)

Skip (Ian) · #4 27-03-2011, 09:15 PM

I am hoping that a number of astronomers from around the world might be able to provide us with some measurements of the brightness of Saturn's rings and the planetary disk, so that we can plot the ratio over time. The more measurements the better.

As mentioned earlier, this is to see if we can detect the "Opposition Effect" (or "Cat's Eye Effect").

Regards
Ian