Rhea: Saturn's Second Largest Moon
Credit & Copyright: NASA,
Voyager,
Copyright Calvin J. Hamilton
Explanation:
Rhea is the second largest moon of
Saturn, behind
Titan,
and the largest without an atmosphere. It is composed mostly of water
ice, but has a small rocky core.
Rhea's
rotation and orbit are locked together (just like Earth's Moon)
so that one side always faces Saturn. A consequence of this is that one
side always leads the other. Rhea's leading surface is much more heavily
cratered than its trailing surface. The above photograph was taken with the
Voyager 1 spacecraft in 1980.
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.
