Iapetus: Saturn's Disappearing Moon

Astronomy Picture of the Day · 1995-10-15 · NASA (public domain)

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Iapetus: Saturn's Disappearing Moon — APOD for 1995-10-15

Iapetus has an unusual surface, one half of which is very dark, the other half very light. This caused it's discoverer Cassini to remark that Iapetus could only be seen when on one side of Saturn but not the other. The reason for the difference between hemispheres is presently unknown. Iapetus is the third largest of Saturn 's moon behind Titan and Rhea . Iapetus is composed predominantly of water ice.

Astronomy Picture of the Day for 1995-10-15 — image & explanation courtesy of NASA (public domain), mirrored at Tukuk-OS for reading and search convenience.

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