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What Is Melting the Ice on Enceladus?    03/04/2005 When Cassini flew by Enceladus from 730 miles up on Feb. 15, scientists were hoping it would reveal the secret of its active surface.  As is common in planetary science, the mystery only deepened (click here for photo gallery).  The surface showed a complex mix of canyons, ridges and spots that suggest a taffy pulling machine has been at work: whatever flowed, it appears to have been thick and viscous.     Richard A. Kerr in Science1 agreed that the little Saturnian ice ball has become “stranger still.”  He mentions...

Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2002 May 11 Natural Saturn On The Cassini Cruise Credit: Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/ STScI/ NASA) Explanation: What could you see approaching Saturn aboard an interplanetary cruise ship? Your view would likely resemble this subtly shaded image of the gorgeous ringed gas giant. Processed by the Hubble Heritage project, the picture intentionally avoids overemphasizing color contrasts and presents a natural looking Saturn with cloud bands, storms, nearly edge-on...