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This raw, unprocessed image of Enceladus was taken on August 13, 2010 and received on Earth August 15, 2010. The camera was pointing toward ENCELADUS at approximately 2,673 kilometers away, and the image was taken using the CL1 and CL2 filters. This image has not been validated or calibrated. A validated/calibrated image will be archived with the NASA Planetary Data System in 2011.
The Cassini Equinox Mission is a joint United States and European endeavor. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter was designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The imaging team consists of scientists from the US, England, France, and Germany. The imaging operations center and team lead (Dr. C. Porco) are based at the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colo.
For more information about the Cassini Equinox Mission visit http://ciclops.org, http://www.nasa.gov/cassini and http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov.
Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
Released: August 16, 2010
Image/Caption Information |
Folks: We're not sure if it looks frosty because of frost on the surface or because we might be looking through a cloud of icy particles from the vents that are surely captured in this image. The illumination can be very complicated -- from Saturn, Sun, other moons, etc -- and until we get that all worked out, it will remain uncertain
I hope so too. Either way, it's a spectacular image, being able to see so much detail on the surface of Enceladus is just amazing.
That's what I thought too. That we are looking right down a plum of venting water vapor. Is that the case or is the brightening an albedo feature on the surface? Hope someone on the imaging team can verify that one way or the other.
Is this image centered on the geysers? Wow!!!
A very interesting image showing a lot of details of Enceladan activity.
