Wolfram Function Repository

Instant-use add-on functions for the Wolfram Language

Function Repository Resource:

 SaturnView3D

Source Notebook

3D graphic of Saturn oriented to match the tilt of the ring plane as seen from Earth

Contributed by: Jeff Bryant

ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"][]

gets the current view of Saturn as seen from Earth.

ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"][date]

gets a view of Saturn as seen from Earth on the specified date.

Details and Options

The results of ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"] can be rotated interactively like all Graphics3D results, but doing so will deviate from the view as seen from Earth.
ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"] takes the same options as Graphics3D.
The scene is scaled such that the outer edges of the rings are at a distance of 1 from the center.
Only dates between and are supported.

Examples

Basic Examples (2) 

Visualize the current view of Saturn and its rings as seen from Earth:

In[1]:=
ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"][]
Out[1]=

Visualize the view of Saturn and its rings as seen from Earth on September 21, 2025:

In[2]:=
ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"][DateObject[{2025, 9, 21}]]
Out[2]=

Options (1) 

SaturnView3D takes the same options as Graphics3D:

In[3]:=
ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"][Background -> Black]
Out[3]=
In[4]:=
ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"][Background -> Black, ViewPoint -> {0.77, 9.37, 3.4}, Lighting -> {{"Ambient", GrayLevel[.2]}, {"Directional", GrayLevel[.7], {20, 0, 0}}}]
Out[4]=

Applications (1) 

The apparent tilt of Saturn's ring plane changes with time as viewed from Earth:

In[5]:=
GraphicsGrid[ Partition[ ResourceFunction["SaturnView3D"][#, Background -> Black, SphericalRegion -> True, ViewAngle -> Pi/30] & /@ DateRange[DateObject[{2010, 3, 22}], DateObject[{2040, 9, 21}], Quantity[2, "Years"]], 4], ImageSize -> 400]
Out[5]=

Version History

  • 2.0.1 – 02 December 2020
  • 2.0.0 – 20 October 2020
  • 1.0.0 – 16 October 2020

Related Resources

License Information