October 15, 2007—While en route to study Saturn's two-tone moon Iapetus, the NASA/ESA space probe Cassini spun around last month to take this snapshot of the ringed planet.

The natural-color mosaic was released on Monday, the ten-year anniversary of Cassini's launch. The ongoing Cassini-Huygens mission is an international project focused on studying the Saturnian system.

"Orbiting Saturn, Cassini is in the middle of the greatest natural laboratory accessible to us in space," project scientist Dennis Matson with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory said in a press release. "With its rings, dozens of moons, and magnetic environment, Saturn is like a mini solar system."

Since its arrival at the planet in 2004, Cassini has revealed a host of surprising discoveries, including the presence of water geysers on Saturn's moon Enceladus and a bizarre hexagon encircling Saturn's north pole.

• More Photos in the News
• Today's 15 Most Read Stories
• Free Email Newsletter: Focus on Photography