The Webb Space Telescope took the best photo of Neptune’s rings in 30 years
Researchers have shared the first image of Neptune from the Webb Space Telescope, and it is perhaps the best view of the planet’s rings in recent decades. The first ever photo of the rings in the near-infrared spectrum is quite clear. At these wavelengths, Neptune does not appear blue because it absorbs so much infrared and visible red light that it appears darker, reports Engadget.
The image shows 7 of Neptune’s 14 confirmed moons, including Triton, which appears as a star at the top of the image, as well as Galatea, Naiad, Thalassa, Despina, Proteus and Larissa. The bright spots and streaks on Neptune are clouds of methane and ice, and a vortex at the south pole. Triton’s eye-catching appearance is the result of both the distinctive diffraction spikes of the James Webb Telescope and the condensed nitrogen surface, which normally reflects 70% of sunlight.
