Bruce Murray Space Image Library

High-resolution global view of Iapetus’ trailing hemisphere

High-resolution global view of Iapetus’ trailing hemisphere
High-resolution global view of Iapetus’ trailing hemisphere The trailing side of Saturn's moon Iapetus is covered in bright, white ice. The far side of the moon is covered in dark material, some of which can be seen on the right of the moon in this image. NASA / JPL-Caltech / SSI / mosaic by Gordan Ugarkovic

The surface is stained with the dark material that covers Iapetus' leading side. The dark material fills some fissures, appears on the flanks of large basins, and even falls in linear chains in the upper left of this image. Also noteworthy are two enormous, unnamed, overlapping impact basins at the lower left. The enlarged version is only half the full resolution.

This version is only half the full resolution.