SoylentNews

takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

NASA has published an image of the north polar region [space.com] of Enceladus [wikipedia.org] taken by the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft [wikipedia.org]. The region is less active than the south polar region:

A recently released photo by NASA's Saturn-orbiting Cassini spacecraft [space.com] shows the many craters, as well as snaking fissures and other geological features, pocking the northern reaches of 313-mile-wide (504 kilometers) Enceladus.

The presence of so many craters indicates that the region hasn't been resurfaced in a long time. However, it's a totally different story near Enceladus' south pole, which "shows signs of intense geologic activity, most prominently focused around the long fractures known as 'tiger stripes' that spray gas and tiny particles from the moon," NASA officials wrote in an image description [nasa.gov] on May 3.

This geological activity is driven primarily by Saturn's powerful gravitational pull, which churns and stretches Enceladus' interior, generating lots of friction and heat. This heat keeps the moon's subsurface ocean of liquid water from freezing, and also drives the geysers that blast from the tiger stripes, scientists have said.

Cassini has finished a fifth trip between Saturn and its rings [spaceflightnow.com], and will make another pass next week.

Also at The Space Reporter [thespacereporter.com]. See also: Expecting the Unexpected on Saturn's Moons [bloomberg.com].

Original Submission