Iapetus
Saturn's two-toned moon with one dark and one bright hemisphere.
About
Iapetus is the third-largest moon of Saturn, famous for its dramatic two-toned coloring: one hemisphere is dark as coal while the other is bright as snow. It also has a striking equatorial ridge.
Properties
Notable Facts
Iapetus has one hemisphere dark as coal and the other bright as snow
It has a unique equatorial ridge up to 20 km high
Giovanni Cassini could only see Iapetus on one side of Saturn due to its brightness difference
Other Moons of Saturn
Titan
Saturn's largest moon with a thick atmosphere and liquid methane lakes on its surface.
5,149.5 km
Diameter
15.9 d
Orbit
1655
Discovered
Enceladus
Saturn moon with water geysers erupting from a subsurface ocean.
504.2 km
Diameter
1.4 d
Orbit
1789
Discovered
Mimas
Saturn's 'Death Star' moon with a giant impact crater.
396.4 km
Diameter
0.9 d
Orbit
1789
Discovered
Tethys
An icy Saturn moon with a massive impact crater and vast canyon system.
1,062 km
Diameter
1.9 d
Orbit
1684
Discovered