Explanation: Why does one half of Dione have more craters than the other? Start with the fact that Saturn's moon Dione has one side that always faces Saturn, and one side that always faces away. This is similar to Earth's Moon. This tidal locking means that one side of Dione always leads as the moon progresses in its orbit, while the other side always trails. Dione should therefore have undergone a significant amount of impacts on its leading half. Strangely, the current leading half of Dione is less cratered than the trailing half. A leading explanation is that some crater-forming impacts were so large they spun Dione, changing the part that suffered the highest impact rate before the moon's spin again became locked. The above detailed image of Dione highlighting the moon's subtle hues is a meticulously-constructed mosaic -- by an dedicated amateur -- of pictures taken during the April 2010 flyby of Dione by NASA's robotic Cassini spacecraft.

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Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.

Публикации с ключевыми словами: Dione - craters - Диона - кратные системы - приливные силы Публикации со словами: Dione - craters - Диона - кратные системы - приливные силы
См. также: Кратер Интрепид на Марсе Рождение тройной звезды Хиксон 91 в созвездии Южной Рыбы Распутывающаяся галактика NGC 3169 Диона, кольца, тени и Сатурн В компании с Дионой "Форверпы" в космосе Все публикации на ту же тему >>