<p>Cassini is supposed to have used its <a href="http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2012-406" rel="nofollow">VIMS</a> spectrometer to observe a Venus transit from Saturn in <a href="http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2012/20dec_transitofvenus/" rel="nofollow">December 2012</a>. NASA said it was a first. They were more interested in an absorption spectrum than an image.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.shatters.net/celestia/" rel="nofollow">Celestia</a> can model such events.
Here is a video of a simulated <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z26KecBXcIM" rel="nofollow">grazing Jupiter transit from Saturn</a>.
There are similar videos of Saturn transits <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6w_6aehJO0" rel="nofollow">from Uranus</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMQD-bu-W3U" rel="nofollow">from Neptune</a>.</p>

<p>Transits are rare events because two planets must be near the intersection of their orbital planes at the same time.
A <a href="https://www.fourmilab.ch/documents/canon_transits/" rel="nofollow">numerical integration study</a> by John Walker found only 1413 transits of Jupiter and 201 of Saturn from outer planets in 250000 years.
A similar, smaller study could determine whether a given spacecraft could have caught a transit on its way through the interplanetary void, but I would not expect a positive result.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-19T20:18:17.333Z
As a side shoot, I think observing a transit of Saturn (and her accompanying rings) would be of really useful scientific value.
MichaelJRoberts
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-19T22:52:26.503Z
The Cassini mission has observed several occultations by the rings of either the light from a bright star or its own radio signal to Earth.
Mike G
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-19T20:12:29.850Z
2016-04-19T20:12:29.850Z
Mike G
<p>I'm quite certain that there isn't any actual images of a transitory event of Jupiter or Saturn across the solar disk from say e.g.,s the Voyager probe, Pioneer 10/11 or even recent New Horizons mission? </p>

<p>Another related question I have, what would the approximate transit of Jupiter look like as seen from Saturn. The distance between Saturn and Jupiter is approximately 4-5AU, and the diameter of Jupiter is one tenth that of the Sun's. Are we looking at perhaps a transit which covers 10-15% of the solar disk?</p>

<p><strong>N.B.</strong> Please note I understand that to observe a transit of Jupiter we have to be superior to it in the Solar System, hence I am asking for images taken by deep Solar System probes only. </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-18T14:53:20.837Z
This kinda counts: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap110904.html except that Saturn subtends a bigger angle than the sun.
Wayfaring Stranger
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-18T15:36:59.650Z
You should know that this question might receive better answers from [space.se] since it is geared specifically toward space probes, and similar questions have been addressed in the past.
called2voyage
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-18T17:47:49.373Z
I doubt that any flyby spacecraft had a camera which could image the Sun and descern an occulting planet on its disc. They were designed to image dimm objects on the background of empty space.
LocalFluff
<solar-system><jupiter><saturn><planetary-transits>
Were there any images of a transitary event of Jupiter or Saturn as imaged by a deep probe mission
MichaelJRoberts
# Were there any images of a transitary event of Jupiter or Saturn as imaged by a deep probe mission

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-04-18)

I'm quite certain that there isn't any actual images of a transitory event of Jupiter or Saturn across the solar disk from say e.g.,s the Voyager probe, Pioneer 10/11 or even recent New Horizons mission?

Another related question I have, what would the approximate transit of Jupiter look like as seen from Saturn. The distance between Saturn and Jupiter is approximately 4-5AU, and the diameter of Jupiter is one tenth that of the Sun's. Are we looking at perhaps a transit which covers 10-15% of the solar disk?

**N.B.** Please note I understand that to observe a transit of Jupiter we have to be superior to it in the Solar System, hence I am asking for images taken by deep Solar System probes only.

**Tags:** solar-system, jupiter, saturn, planetary-transits

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: This kinda counts: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap110904.html except that Saturn subtends a bigger angle than the sun.  
> **username_2**: You should know that this question might receive better answers from [space.se] since it is geared specifically toward space probes, and similar questions have been addressed in the past.  
> **username_3**: I doubt that any flyby spacecraft had a camera which could image the Sun and descern an occulting planet on its disc. They were designed to image dimm objects on the background of empty space.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2016-04-19. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

Cassini is supposed to have used its [VIMS](http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2012-406) spectrometer to observe a Venus transit from Saturn in [December 2012](http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2012/20dec_transitofvenus/). NASA said it was a first. They were more interested in an absorption spectrum than an image.

[Celestia](http://www.shatters.net/celestia/) can model such events.
Here is a video of a simulated [grazing Jupiter transit from Saturn](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z26KecBXcIM).
There are similar videos of Saturn transits [from Uranus](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6w_6aehJO0) and [from Neptune](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMQD-bu-W3U).

Transits are rare events because two planets must be near the intersection of their orbital planes at the same time.
A [numerical integration study](https://www.fourmilab.ch/documents/canon_transits/) by John Walker found only 1413 transits of Jupiter and 201 of Saturn from outer planets in 250000 years.
A similar, smaller study could determine whether a given spacecraft could have caught a transit on its way through the interplanetary void, but I would not expect a positive result.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: As a side shoot, I think observing a transit of Saturn (and her accompanying rings) would be of really useful scientific value.  
> **username_4**: The Cassini mission has observed several occultations by the rings of either the light from a bright star or its own radio signal to Earth.  

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