NASA's Cassini spacecraft sends pictures of Saturn's moon

Hi ATS, NASA has released this new image, which I think is pretty cool!

Sometimes I get blown away thinking about how far away moons like this are, how distant it is from earth, we are seeing something in such detail - even though it's millions of kilometres away.


[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/3f1ab99b40ab.jpg[/atsimg]

BBC News

Nasa has released the latest raw images of Saturn's moon Enceladus, from the Cassini spacecraft's extended mission to the planet and its satellites.

The images show the moon's rippling terrain in remarkable clarity.

Cassini started transmitting uncalibrated temperature data and images during a flyby on 21 November.

The data will help scientists create a highly detailed mosaic image of the southern part of the moon's Saturn-facing hemisphere, and a thermal map.

This thermal map will help researchers to study the long fractures in the south polar region of the moon's surface, which have been dubbed "tiger stripes" and are warmer than the rest of the surface.

Some info on Enceladus

Enceladus is the sixth-largest moon of Saturn. It was discovered in 1789 by William Herschel. Until the two Voyager spacecraft passed near it in the early 1980s, very little was known about this small moon besides the identification of water ice on its surface. The Voyagers showed that the diameter of Enceladus is only 500 km, about a tenth of that of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, and reflects almost 100% of the sunlight that strikes it. Voyager 1 found that Enceladus orbited in the densest part of Saturn's diffuse E ring, indicating a possible association between the two, while Voyager 2 revealed that despite the moon's small size, it had a wide range of terrains ranging from old, heavily cratered surfaces to young, tectonically deformed terrain, with some regions with surface ages as young as 100 million years old.

Anyway, thought I'd share it with you all!

Take care, Kiwifoot!


[edit on 23-11-2009 by kiwifoot]

New pictures and information from space always fascinates me, there's so much to discover out there. Maybe someday we'll move beyond all the bs and focus on exploration.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/789e4e4ae848.jpg[/atsimg]

This is to give a better idea of that moon. Thanks for bringing up this article.
It is very interesting to see that yet so far away, we can take pictures of celestial objects with such clarity.

reply to post by bigern


Yeah I agree, just imagine what it would be like to actually orbit this moon and see it with one's own eyes!

reply to post by lagenese



No probs, and thanks for that image too, it's a beauty! It never ceases to amaze me!

reply to post by kiwifoot


That would be amazing and actually seeing something like Saturn or Jupiter up close c'mon, hell right now I'd settle for seeing Earth from orbit.

Originally posted by bigern
reply to post by kiwifoot

 

That would be amazing and actually seeing something like Saturn or Jupiter up close c'mon, hell right now I'd settle for seeing Earth from orbit.

Yep, you make a good point, it must be truly amazing to witness that.

I think that one day we will get there, not in my lifetime but in the next 100 years or so.

I do believe strongly that we are being held back technologically, and that there already exists a great deal of secret technology that would solve half the problems that would arise by attempting long distance space travel..

that's if they haven't already done it!

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/3f1ab99b40ab.jpg[/atsimg]


Are those thermal vents spewing vapor out into space or just star/sun glare?

Hi, planets & moons fans.

Want nice photos ?
Here are my dayly bookmarks.

CASSINI_SATURN ###*###
saturn.jpl.nasa.gov...

NASA Phoenix
www.nasa.gov...

Mars Explor Rovers Mission
marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov...

And while watching the photos
www.tropicalglen.com...

blue skies.

reply to post by SLAYER69


Same question crossed my mind, the article says that the vents spew material hundreds of km into space.

But I don't know!

I hope one of the more knowledgeable members could enlighten us! (But my guess is camera flare/glare or some such effect!)

[edit on 23-11-2009 by kiwifoot]

Originally posted by C-JEAN
Hi, planets & moons fans.

Want nice photos ?
Here are my dayly bookmarks.

CASSINI_SATURN ###*###
saturn.jpl.nasa.gov...

NASA Phoenix
www.nasa.gov...

Mars Explor Rovers Mission
marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov...

And while watching the photos
www.tropicalglen.com...

blue skies.

Classic, nice pics, but can I recommend one thing???

Put this:

"And while watching the photos
www.tropicalglen.com..."

FIRST!!!!

MAKES THE EXPERIENCE SO MUCH COOLER!

reply to post by kiwifoot

They are geysers of water vapor and ice crystals. Like Yellowstone only much, much bigger.

Wierd stuff.

Close views of the southern polar region, where jets of water vapor and icy particles spew from vents within the moon's distinctive "tiger stripe" fractures, provide surprising evidence of Earth-like tectonics. They yield new insight into what may be happening within the fractures. The latest data on the plume -- the huge cloud of vapor and particles fed by the jets that extend into space -- show it varies over time and has a far-reaching effect on Saturn's magnetosphere.

www.saturntoday.com...

reply to post by kiwifoot


Well you know the reason why I ask right?

Possible life in oceans under the ice crust.

Originally posted by Phage
reply to post by kiwifoot

 

They are geysers of water vapor and ice crystals. Like Yellowstone only much, much bigger.

Wierd stuff.

Close views of the southern polar region, where jets of water vapor and icy particles spew from vents within the moon's distinctive "tiger stripe" fractures, provide surprising evidence of Earth-like tectonics. They yield new insight into what may be happening within the fractures. The latest data on the plume -- the huge cloud of vapor and particles fed by the jets that extend into space -- show it varies over time and has a far-reaching effect on Saturn's magnetosphere.

www.saturntoday.com...

Cheers Phage, I was wrong again as usual!

I was going to press the big "P" button to request your assistance but you beat me to it!

thanks again!