On Wednesday , NASA ’s Cassini investigation made its closest crack yet above the north perch of Saturn ’s Sun Myung Moon Enceladus , coming within 1,142 Admiralty mile ( 1,839 kilometers ) of the icy , eruptive satellite . Yesterday , we begin to get back prototype of the meeting — and dang , they are beautiful .
Enceladus may be tiny — from last to end it could fit between San Francisco and LA — but this little moon ’s got a larger - than - living personality . Its surface is deal entirely in glass , give it the dazzling appearance of a perfectly mob snowball . But it ’s beneath that shiny surface that thing get really interesting .
scientist recently confirm the presence of aglobal , subsurface ocean on Enceladus , one that ’s probably inflame through tidal fundamental interaction with Saturn . The presence of strong swimming weewee blank space Enceladus on par with Europa as a nominee for harboring extraterrestrial life . honorable of all , we can take free samples of Enceladus ’ sea water , thanks to aseries of cryovolcanoesthat spew frigid cloth off the moon ’s south pole .
Flying by those south rod plumes and taste Enceladus ’ ocean are the next rules of order of clientele . On October 28th , Cassini will make an even tightlipped approach , sailing within 30 geographical mile ( 49 km ) of the lunar month ’s south diametric region to sample Enceladus ’ sea water and analyze its interpersonal chemistry . We already experience that this extraterrestrial sea is alkali like our own , andmodeling studies suggestit could be dominated by the same chemical substance reactions that fueled life on early Earth . The information Cassini returns next could help scientists decide whether this moonshine really is a good nominee for habitability . If so , that noesis would go a foresightful way toward move afuture life - discoverer mission .
We ’ll keep a closelipped eye on the next encounter . For now , we can all just enjoy the stunning new snug - up effigy of this strangely beautiful moon , and ponder what lie beneath its cratered surface .
slender pass crisscross craters along Enceladus ’ north pole in this image taken on October 14th . These fractures are found across the total surface of the icy moon
beaten-up terrain around the north pole of Enceladus taken on October 14th
A leash of craters located near Enceladus ’ north rod accept on October 14th
An unprocessed image of Enceladus ’ north pole taken on October 14th
Image credit : NASA / JPL - Caltech / Space Science Institute
AstrobiologyAstronomySaturnScienceSpace
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