Surprise! The Earth is visible in this image of Saturn during a total eclipse, taken by the Cassini spacecraft. Today, it will take another image.
Today may go down in history as The Day the Earth Smiled. Or, at least, that is what TED speaker Carolyn Porco (watch her talk) is hoping. Today from 9:27 to 9:42 pm GMT, the Cassini spaceship — an unmanned ship studying Saturn — will be taking a photograph of Saturn and its ring system. And because of the angle of the photo, Earth will be photobombing it. In other words, the entire planet needs to go outside for that 15 minute window and smile for the camera, which is a billion miles away.
In the video below, actor Morgan Freeman urges you to be part of this exciting day. Want to know what time the Cassini photograph will be taken in your time zone? This time zone locator will help. United States East Coast — we’ve got about two hours to go.
Read much more about The Day the Earth Smiled, and what inspired it »