An icy moon of Saturn, discovered on 28 August 1789 by William Herschel, roughly 500 kilometers across. Cryovolcanic jets near its south pole shoot geyser-like plumes of water vapor, ice particles and other volatiles, including sodium chloride crystals, into space at a rate of about 200 kilograms per second, evidence for a liquid subsurface ocean beneath its frozen crust. NASA's Cassini spacecraft flew repeatedly through these plumes beginning in 2005, sampling their composition directly and making Enceladus one of the solar system's leading candidates for a habitable environment beyond Earth.
Facts
Object TypeIcy moon (natural satellite of Saturn) 1 Diameter (km) Orbital Distanceabout 238,037 km from Saturn 1 Discovery Year Connections
Associated With
Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Source Cassini-Huygens - NASA Science
Source Wikipedia: Titan (moon)
Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Orbits
Source Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Sources
1. Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Wikimedia FoundationEnceladus (Wikipedia) - diameter
approximately 513 km between the sub- and anti-Saturnian poles, 503 km between the leading and trailing hemispheres, and 497 km between the north and south poles
Enceladus (Wikipedia) - object type
existence of a subsurface ocean
Enceladus, Wikipedia - physical characteristics infobox
approximately 1.080318 x 10^20 kg
Enceladus, Wikipedia - orbital characteristics infobox
238037 km
Entity description, enceladus catalogue classification
An icy moon of Saturn, discovered on 28 August 1789 by William Herschel, roughly 500 kilometers across.
Orbits: Saturn, Enceladus (Wikipedia) - orbits Saturn
The Cassini spacecraft conducted extensive investigations of Enceladus
View the Source NASA Solar System Exploration
National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationEnceladus page, Overview section, plume sentence
In 2005, NASA's Cassini spacecraft discovered that icy water particles and gas gush from the moon's surface at approximately 800 miles per hour (400 meters per second).
Enceladus page, Overview section, size sentence
About as wide as Arizona, Enceladus also has the whitest, most reflective surface in the solar system.
Enceladus page, Discovery section, Herschel sentence
British astronomer William Herschel spotted Enceladus orbiting Saturn on Aug. 28, 1789.
Enceladus page, Overview section, orbital period sentence
It completes one orbit every 32.9 hours within the densest part of Saturn's E Ring.
Enceladus page, Overview section, E ring sentence
The eruptions appear to be continuous, generating an enormous halo of fine ice dust around Enceladus, which supplies material to Saturn's E-ring.
Enceladus page, Overview section, ocean spray sentence
A handful of worlds are thought to have liquid water oceans beneath their frozen shell, but Enceladus sprays its ocean out into space where spacecraft can sample it.
Associated With: Cassini, Enceladus page, Overview section, Cassini plume discovery sentence
In 2005, NASA's Cassini spacecraft discovered that icy water particles and gas gush from the moon's surface at approximately 800 miles per hour (400 meters per second).
Associated With: Mimas, Enceladus page, Overview section, orbit sentence (Mimas neighbor)
Enceladus orbits Saturn at a distance of 148,000 miles (238,000 kilometers) between the orbits of two other moons, Mimas and Tethys.
Associated With: Tethys, Enceladus page, Overview section, orbit sentence (Tethys neighbor)
Enceladus orbits Saturn at a distance of 148,000 miles (238,000 kilometers) between the orbits of two other moons, Mimas and Tethys.
Associated With: Titan, Saturn Facts, Moons section, introduction sentence (Enceladus jets and Titan lakes)
From the jets of water that spray from Saturn's moon Enceladus to the methane lakes on smoggy Titan, the Saturn system is a rich source of scientific discovery and still holds many mysteries.
Associated With: Titan, Saturn Facts, Moons section, introduction sentence (Titan lakes and Enceladus jets)
From the jets of water that spray from Saturn's moon Enceladus to the methane lakes on smoggy Titan, the Saturn system is a rich source of scientific discovery and still holds many mysteries.
Associated With: Saturn, Saturn Facts, Introduction section, Enceladus clause
From the jets of water that spray from Saturn's moon Enceladus to the methane lakes on smoggy Titan
View the Source Enceladus (Wikipedia)
Enceladus (Wikipedia) - plumes
Cryovolcanoes near the south pole shoot geyser-like jets of water vapour, molecular hydrogen, other volatiles, and solid material, including sodium chloride crystals and ice particles, into space, totalling about 200 kilograms (440 pounds) per second.
Enceladus (Wikipedia) - discovery
discovered on August 28, 1789, by William Herschel
In Group: Moons of Saturn, Lead sentence
Enceladus is the sixth-largest moon of Saturn and the 18th largest in the Solar System.
View the SourceCassini-Huygens - NASA Science
Associated With: Cassini-Huygens Mission, Science at Saturn section, Enceladus image captionQuote, Associated With: Cassini-Huygens Mission, Science at Saturn section, Enceladus image caption
Dramatic plumes, both large and small, spray water ice and vapor from many locations along the famed 'tiger stripes' near the south pole of Saturn's moon Enceladus.
Wikipedia: Titan (moon)
Associated With: Dione, Enceladus, Wikipedia - orbit and rotation section, Dione resonance sentenceQuote, Associated With: Dione, Enceladus, Wikipedia - orbit and rotation section, Dione resonance sentence
Enceladus is currently in a 2:1 mean-motion orbital resonance with Dione, completing two orbits around Saturn for every one orbit completed by Dione.
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