NASA releases shocking image of Saturn's rings 'bending' at sharp angle

It appears as though something freaky might be happening on Saturn.

NASA recently released some odd images taken from the Cassini spacecraft that have planet-watchers scratching their heads.

The stunning, high-resolution photos seem to show two of Saturn's rings bending at a sharp angle as they near the planet -- but rest assured, space enthusiasts, nothing terrible has happened to the 6th planet's icy halos.

A press release issued by the agency reveals that the bizarre warping of the A and F rings in the photos is simply an extraterrestrial optical illusion.

NASA

"In its upper regions, Saturn's atmosphere absorbs some of the light reflected by the rings as it passes through," NASA said in a statement. "But absorption is not the only thing that happens to that light. As it passes from space to the atmosphere and back out into space towards Cassini's cameras, its path is refracted, or bent. The result is that the ring's image appears warped."

Now all we have to wonder is, is Earth the first planet where these photos have gone viral ... or has someone else beat us to it?

More photos of Saturn and its rings: