The planet's massive hurricane is seen in this image captured by the Cassini spacecraft.

(NASA)

At a Glance

The Cassini spacecraft has sent back images taken after it dove between Saturn and its rings.It was the first time the spacecraft has ever been between the planet and its rings.NASA plans to do 22 more such dives before the spacecraft's mission ends Sept. 15.

For the first time ever, a spacecraft has made it between Saturn and its rings, and NASA has released images of its view.

The Cassini spacecraft, nearly at the end of a groundbreaking mission that started nearly two decades ago, snapped pictures , according to a NASA report. The raw images , and even though they lack captions, the photos show us Saturn like few have seen before.

"In the grandest tradition of exploration, NASA's Cassini spacecraft has once again blazed a trail, showing us new wonders and demonstrating where our curiosity can take us if we dare,"Jim Green, director of the Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters, said in the report.

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The planet's massive hurricane is seen in this image taken by the Cassini spacecraft.

(NASA)

Another image of Saturn captured by the Cassini spacecraft.

(NASA)

Another image of Saturn captured by the Cassini spacecraft.

(NASA)

Cassini made a narrow dive through a gap in Saturn's rings and came as close to the planet's cloud tops as about 1,900 miles, according to the report. Mission managers were extra careful with the dive plans because this was the first time they've explored the region, the report added.

"No spacecraft has ever been this close to Saturn before. We could only rely on predictions, based on our experience with Saturn's other rings, of what we thought this gap between the rings and Saturn would be like," Cassini Project Manager Earl Maize of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said in the report. "I am delighted to report that Cassini shot through the gap just as we planned and has come out the other side in excellent shape."

The 77,000-mph dive was the only way these images were possible, and NASA said Cassini will perform another similar dive on May 2. It's expected to orbit Saturn once a week and make 22 more dives through the rings before the mission ends Sept. 15, when it will be intentionally crashed into the planet.

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Earth at night, 2016

The earth at night, 2016. (NASA Earth Observatory images by Joshua Stevens, using Suomi NPP VIIRS data from Miguel Román, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center)