The Day The Earth Smiled

Something great, something big, something very special that’s never happened before is about to happen!

On July 19, 2013, the Cassini spacecraft, currently in orbit around Saturn, will be turned to image that planet and its entire ring system during an eclipse of the sun, as it has done twice before during its previous 9 years in orbit.

But this time will be very different. This time, the images collected will capture, in natural color, a glimpse of our own planet alongside Saturn and its rings on a day that will be the first time the Earth’s inhabitants know in advance their picture is being taken from a billion miles away.

http://www.richarddawkins.net/news_articles/2013/7/13/the-day-the-earth-smiled

This unofficial version of the Cassini spacecraft’s July 19 portrait of Saturn and Earth shows our planet as a bright spot above and to the right of the ringed planet’s disk. The raw imagery was processed by Val Klavans. The Cassini imaging team is working on a finished version of the portrait.

http://www.nbcnews.com/science/did-you-smile-camera-earth-glitters-new-view-saturn-6C10700482