Mimas its distinct look is called Herschel, after the moon's The moon also has a bizarre resemblance to the Death Star in George Lukas's Star Wars films. Thank you for signing up to Space.

Appearing like a cyclops gazing off into space, Saturn's moon Mimas and its large Herschel Crater are profiled in this view from NASA's Cassini spacecraft taken on Feb. 13, 2010. In this respect, Mimas is much like Tethys, Rhea, and Dione – moon’s of Saturn that are primarily composed of water ice. We have recorded two episodes of Astronomy Cast just about Saturn. Known as the Cassini Division, the large break sits between Saturn's A and B rings. Email Hanneke Weitering at [email protected] or follow her @hannekescience. This mosaic, created from images taken by NASA's Cassini spacecraft during its closest flyby of Saturn's moon Mimas on Feb. 13, 2010, looks straight at the moon's Herschel crater and reveals new insights about the moon's surface. Subscribe to our mailing list and get interesting stuff and updates to your email inbox. As Cassini nears the end of its mission, it continues to beam data back to Earth, including this image of Saturn, its rings and the tiny moon Mimas. What Would Happen If You Shot A Bullet On A Train? It's less than 400 km (245 mi) across and the smallest body we know of that's rounded by gravity. Our Book is out! There was a problem. The reason for this appropriate nickname is because the satellite has a massive crater on its surface, which strikes an eerie resemblance to the space station borne from the cruel mind of Darth Vader! New York, With an estimated orbital velocity of 14.28 km/s, Mimas takes 0.942 days to complete a single orbit of Saturn. ‘Death Star’ Moon Mimas Shown In Stunning Detail In Latest NASA Pic A moon that bears a suspicious resemblance to the "Death Star," a somber remembrance for NASA and more of Januar Herschel crater gives Mimas its "Death Star" appearance.

The name Mimas takes its inspiration from Greek mythology. What Would Happen If A Planet Suddenly Disappeared From The Solar System? (Image: © NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute). Mimas is responsible for clearing the material from the Cassini Division, which is the gap between Saturn’s two widest rings – the A Ring and B Ring. Why Don’t Space Shuttles Take Off Like Airplanes? In addition to providing multiple images of Mimas’ cratered surface, it also took measurements of Mimas’ orbit, which led to speculation about a possible interior ocean. With a giant crater covering a significant fraction of its surface, Saturn's gray moon Mimas resembles a real-life Death Star from the "Star Wars" movies. Another great resource about Mimas is Solar Views, and you can get even more info from the Nine Planets.

Using his 40-foot reflector telescope, English astronomer Sir William Herschel discovered his second moon of Saturn on Sept. 17, 1789, the seventh known satellite at the time. At temperatures of minus 209 degrees C (minus 344 degrees F), the frozen surface behaves much like rock. Herschel Crater is 130 kilometers, or 80 miles, wide and covers most of the right of this image. However, pop culture references aside, scientists have made a number of interesting observations based on the data acquired about the moon, some of which scientists are still unable to explain. Shortly after he invented a huge new kind of reflecting telescope called the Herschelian telescope, he spotted Mimas orbiting Saturn. The Voyager 1 and 2 missions both flew by Mimas in 1980 and 1981, respectively, and snapped pictures of Saturn’s atmosphere, its rings, its system of moons. Temperatures around the Herschel crater are cooler than more distant regions of the moon, with a slightly warm spot showing up on the crater itself.eval(ez_write_tag([[728,90],'scienceabc_com-banner-1','ezslot_4',171,'0','0'])); Another interesting fact about this moon is that this natural satellite has a very low density! An ocean is a less distinct possibility because any heat generated would likely escape through the icy surface, freezing what is inside, the study added. Karla Thompson – @karlaii / https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEItkORQYd4Wf0TpgYI_1fw We’ve written many great articles about Mimas and Saturn’s moons here at Universe Today. Saturn’s moon Mimas was discovered by William Herschel in 1789, more than 100 years after Saturn’s larger moons were discovered by Christian Huygens and Giovanni Cassini. Get breaking space news and the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more! That’s awesome Bryan! Like many of Saturn’s moons. The density of the moon is only 1.17 times that of liquid water, leading scientists to conclude that it is composed primarily of water ice, with only a small sample of rock. time. This large crater gives Mimas the appearance of the “Death Star” from Star Wars. Follow us @Spacedotcom and on Facebook. The overlapping depressions cover the surface, with several reaching sizes of 25 miles (40 kilometers) in diameter. And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected]. Consider Mimas, which is often referred to as Saturn’s “Death Star Moon” on a count of its unusual appearance.

discoverer. This false-color view of Saturn's moon Mimas from NASA's Cassini spacecraft highlights terrain-dependent color differences and shows dark streaks running down the sides of some of the craters on the region of the moon that leads in its orbit around Saturn. Are Giant Insects Larger Than Humans Possible? Receive news and offers from our other brands? Mimas has a slightly elliptical orbit, which should cause more tidal heating in its interior. Universities Space Research Association (Link 1), Universities Space Research Association (Link 2).

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(Photo Credit: Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)/Wikimedia Commons). At the time, the icy bodies were named based on their distance from the ringed planet. Traveling only 115,280 miles (185,520 km) from Saturn, Mimas is the closest major moon orbiting the planet. If Light Has No Mass, Why is It Affected by Black Holes? Between its estimated 150 moons and moonlets (only 53 of which have been identified and named) there is no shortage of scientific curiosities, and enough mysteries to keep astronomers here on Earth busy for decades. I’ve started to assemble a folder with your columns, so when some bright eight grader asks “What about the ‘Death Star’ moon?”, I am ready to go!

Updated on: 2 Feb 2020 by Venkatesh Vaidyanathan.

It wasn't until 1847 that Herschel's son, John, suggested the satellites around the gas giant be named after the Titans, the mythological siblings of the Greek god Cronus, known to the Romans as Saturn. 1.1479 ± 0.007 g/cm³ is just slightly higher than that of water (1 g/cm³), which means that Mimas is mostly composed of water ice, with just a small amount of silicate rock. Much has been learned about Saturn’s system of moons in recent decades, thanks to the Voyager missions and the more recent surveys conducted by the Cassini spaceprobe.

Here's a close-up look at Mimas from NASA's Cassini spacecraft. Scientists believe that whatever was responsible for this impact nearly destroyed the moon. 0.0196, ranging from 181,902 km at periapsis and 189,176 km at apoapsis. Ground-based astronomers could only see Mimas as little more than a dot until Voyagers I and II imaged it in 1980.