Strange geysers on an active, icy moon of Saturn

 

Enceladus is an enchanting, bewitching and icy lunar world that surrounds the beautiful ringed gas giant planet Saturn in the outer regions of our Solar System, far from the delicious heat of our Star, the Sun. Strange ice geysers are known to Water (plumes of water vapor, ice crystals, and organic particles) are constantly erupting in the south pole region of Enceladus. In July 2013, planetary scientists announced that the icy eruptions of these numerous geysers appear to be strongest when the small lunar world is farthest from its parent planet. This discovery provides further evidence that a body of liquid water is hidden beneath the icy surface of the moon.

Saturn is the smaller of the two gas giant planets that inhabit the outer regions of our Solar System; Jupiter is the largest. With its magnificent enchanting ring system, glittering icy moons, and myriad falling moons, Saturn is probably the most beautiful planet in our Sun's enchanting family. Until 2004, no spacecraft had visited Saturn in more than twenty years: Pioneer 11 had taken the first close-up pictures of Saturn when it zoomed past it in 1979, Voyager 1 had its encounter about a year later, and in August 1981 Voyager 2 had its brief but extremely productive encounter. Finally, on July 1, 2004, NASA's Cassini spacecraft entered Saturn's orbit and began taking some very revealing photographs.

Saturn has 62 known moons. Most are icy, dancing moons. However, the largest and icy medium-sized moons circle their enormous parent planet in a fascinating and bewitching dance. Enceladus is a medium-sized lunar world, about 500 kilometers in diameter, and is believed to contain an underground reservoir of liquid water, perhaps even a global ocean, beneath its frozen layer of crust. Where there is liquid water, there is always the possibility, though not the promise, that life as we know it exists. Enceladus also has the highest albedo of any moon that inhabits our Solar System, with its brilliantly bright and highly reflective surface. It also has a very active geology, which has left its surface almost free of craters. This is because Enceladus is constantly being resurfaced by eruptions gushing out from its many icy geysers, which are responsible for fresh, sparkling snow that keeps the surface of the mysterious lunar world smooth and shiny.

A study published in July 2013 shows that the intensity of icy geyser eruptions on Enceladus depends on its proximity to Saturn, according to data obtained from NASA's Cassini spacecraft. This is the first clear observation that the bright plume emerging from the moon's south pole varies predictably. The findings are reported in an article published in the July 31, 2013 online edition of the journal Nature.

"Enceladus' jets apparently function like adjustable garden hose nozzles. The nozzles are almost closed when Enceladus is closest to Saturn and they are widest when the moon is further away. We think this has to do with how Saturn squeezes and releases the moon with its gravity, "explained Dr. Matthew Hedman in a NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) press release dated July 31, 2013. Dr. Hedman is the lead author of the paper and a scientist of the Cassini team based at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. JPL is located in Pasadena, California.

Cassini saw the jets emanating from the very bright column in 2005. Water ice mixed with organic particles spills out of several thin fissures that have been dubbed "tiger stripes" by playful planetary scientists, who noted a similarity between the fissures. that cross the south pole of the small moon, and the dark stripes that characterize the fur of a tiger!

Tiger, tiger burning bright!

The warm vents that make up Enceladus' "tiger stripes" spew huge plumes of water vapor, ice, and organic particles into space. While these mysterious "stripes" have been studied previously, this study shows for the first time that there is a correlation between the intensity of the eruptions of the columns and the location of Enceladus in its orbit around its parent planet.

Dr. Hedman and his team of scientists found that when the icy moon approaches its furthest point from Saturn, the plumes seen in the Cassini data appear brighter. This clearly indicates that the fissures in the southern part of Enceladus are ธรรมชาติสุดแปลก.