7/10/79 1.45 million km (900,000 mi)
In this four-picture mosaic, the arms of the ring curving toward the spacecraft (on the near side of the planet) are cut off by the planet’s shadow. Scientists estimate that the distance from the Jovian cloud tops to the outer edge of the ring is 55,000 kilometers (35,000 miles).
7/10/79 1.55 million km (961,000 mi)
In this picture, which is composed of six images, there is evidence of structure within the ring, but the spacecraft motion during these long exposures obscured the highest resolution detail. However, there is speculation that the ring width, estimated at 6000 kilometers (4000 miles), contains more than one ring.
7/10/79 1.45 million km (900,000 mi)
This photograph is an enlargement of the isolated left frame in the first picture and reveals a density gradient of very small particles extending inward from the ring. The thickness of the ring has been estimated at less than one kilometer (0.6 mile) although the ring appears about 30 kilometers (19 miles) thick in the image, due to camera motion and finite resolution. Composition of the low-albedo (dark) particles is not known, but particle size probably ranges from microscopic to at most a few meters in diameter. If collected together to form a single body, the total mass of the Jovian rings would form an object with a diameter less than twice that of tiny Amalthea.
