NASA’s Webb Space Telescope Captures Saturn In Breathtaking New Images

by Aaron Leong — Thursday, March 26, 2026, 10:10 AM EDT

NASA’s top-dog telescopes, Hubble and Webb, have just released a never-before-seen collaborative portrait of Saturn. By combining Hubble’s visible-light vision with Webb’s infrared superpowers, astronomers have captured the gas giant in a dual-mode showcase that reveals everything from deep-tissue atmospheric storms to rings that literally glow like one giant neon sign.

duo portrait — *(Left) JWST's infrared view of Saturn on Nov. 29, 2024. (Right) HST's corresponding visible-light view captured on Aug. 22, 2024. (Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI)*

Captured just 14 weeks apart in late 2024, the observations catch Saturn as it tilts toward its 2025 equinox. In the Hubble view, the planet appears in its familiar, softly banded pale-gold hues, showing the sunlight reflected off the uppermost cloud decks. However, the JWST infrared data transforms this serene scene into a high-contrast landscape of glowing rings and deep-seated storms. Because Saturn’s rings are composed primarily of water ice, they appear exceptionally bright in the infrared, acting as a brilliant halo against the planet.

In the northern mid-latitudes, JWST’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) shows a long-lived jet stream known as the "Ribbon Wave" meandering through the clouds, driven by atmospheric waves that do not reach the upper hazes. Just south of this wave, a persistent white speck marks the lingering remains of the "Great Springtime Storm," a massive disturbance that first erupted in late 2010. While the storm's peak has long passed, its atmospheric wake continues to influence Saturn’s weather patterns over a decade later.

As for the grey-green glow at Saturn’s poles, NASA believes this coloration at the 4.3-micron wavelength indicates a specialized layer of high-altitude aerosols that scatter light differently than the rest of the planet. These images represent some of the final high-resolution views of the iconic north polar hexagon that mankind will see for awhile; as the planet moves into its next seasonal cycle, the northern pole will soon enter a 15-year period of winter darkness.

saturn webb 20260325 193346 — *Wide-angle version of the JWST's view of Saturn shows Titan, Janus, Dione, Enceladus, Mimas, and Tethys. (Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI)*

Aside from the planet itself, the telescopes captured cameos from several of Saturn’s 285 moons. In Webb’s wide-field view, the massive, hazy Titan is joined by smaller satellites like Janus, Dione, and Enceladus. The latter is of particular interest to astrobiologists, as previous missions have confirmed it harbors a subsurface ocean. By observing these moons in tandem with the planet, NASA can better track their orbits and look for signs of activity, such as the water vapor plumes known to erupt from Enceladus’s south pole.