Surface of Iapetus

The Surface of Iapetus

These are two pictures of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white. Other areas are very dark. The Cassini spacecraft took these pictures.
Click on image for full size version (58K JPG)
Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.

The surface of Iapetus is not like any other moon. No other moon looks half-black and half-white. It seems to be covered on the dark side with a mysterious black and smooth substance, and on its bright side appears to have many craters. Whatever caused this half-and-half look is a mystery to scientists.

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The Surface of Iapetus

These are two pictures of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white. Other areas are very dark. The Cassini spacecraft took these pictures.
Click on image for full size version (58K JPG)
Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.

The surface of Iapetus is very unique. No other moon has its half-black and half-white appearance. It appears to be resurfaced on the dark side with a dark and smooth substance, and on its bright side appears to be heavily cratered. The process which caused this strange darkening is unknown.

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The Surface of Iapetus

Two views of the strange surface of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white, while other regions are very dark. These images were captured by the Cassini spacecraft.
Click on image for full size version (58K JPG)
Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.

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Last modified October 8, 2009 by Randy Russell.
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The Surface of Iapetus

These are two pictures of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white. Other areas are very dark. The Cassini spacecraft took these pictures. Click on image for full size version (58K JPG) Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.

The Surface of Iapetus

These are two pictures of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white. Other areas are very dark. The Cassini spacecraft took these pictures. Click on image for full size version (58K JPG) Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.

The Surface of Iapetus

Two views of the strange surface of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white, while other regions are very dark. These images were captured by the Cassini spacecraft. Click on image for full size version (58K JPG) Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.

These are two pictures of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white. Other areas are very dark. The Cassini spacecraft took these pictures.
Click on image for full size version (58K JPG)
Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.

These are two pictures of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white. Other areas are very dark. The Cassini spacecraft took these pictures.
Click on image for full size version (58K JPG)
Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.

Two views of the strange surface of Iapetus. Some parts of the moon's surface are bright white, while other regions are very dark. These images were captured by the Cassini spacecraft.
Click on image for full size version (58K JPG)
Images courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.