spacetoday.net: Saturn moon sprays neighbors with ice

Saturn moon sprays neighbors with ice

Posted: Mon, Feb 12, 2007, 7:28 AM ET (1228 GMT)
Enceladus seen by Cassini (NASA/JPL)

A Saturnian moon with active geysers is coating a number of other moons with ice particles, scientists reported last week. In a paper published in the journal Science, researchers found that ice geysers on the moon Enceladus had ejected ice particles that were coating the surfaces of at least 11 other moons of Saturn. That coating of ice particles explains why those small moons, which are themselves not geologically active, have bright surfaces that must be renewed regularly to remain highly reflective. Enceladus and the other moons all orbit in Saturn's E-ring, which itself is formed by ice particles from Enceladus.