Saturn spends the year in the western half of Gemini, coming to opposition on the last day of the year, December 31.  This means that 2004 is a rare year of no Saturnian opposition (it will come to opposition next in the first half of January 2005).  Here we see Saturn in the early stage of retrograde motion, passing between ζ and ε Geminorum, shining at magnitude -0.32, well above average brightness.  Unannotated image.