# @nasa on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/CnZhlp-ORnD
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/3170158-nasa-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/92d9d85f0b.jpg
- **Posted:** 2023-01-14T14:24:21.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** NASA (@NASA) — https://gondola.cc/NASA

## Caption

The cold never bothered me anyway 🧊⁣
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Our Cassini spacecraft glimpsed Saturn's cold and icy moon Enceladus, whose frozen surface ice hides a deep ocean. Though it may look like rivers etch the surface of the small moon, the cracks covering the surface are believed to be from relatively warm sections in the crust, where ice water particles and gasses jet out continuously from the oceans below, contributing to Saturn's E ring. Some of these fissures may be hydrothermal vents that stretch down to its ocean.⁣
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Enceladus is a small moon that orbits Saturn at a distance of 148,000 miles (238,000 km) in a tidally locked elliptical pattern – the same side of Enceladus faces toward the planet, with an average temperature of -330 Fº (-201 Cº). The average thickness of the icy shell is about 12 to 16 miles (20 to 25 km).⁣
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In 2005, the Cassini spacecraft first examined the moon's south polar region, capturing its unique and complex terrain. Along the way, the spacecraft has deepened our understanding of the moon – leading scientists to believe that Enceladus' chemistry, vast oceans, and internal heat – make it a prime world to search for life beyond our planet.⁣
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Image description: Cassini's image of the white surface of Enceladus is seen in an enhanced colored view. The moon's surface is marred by light blue cracks spreading out in all directions and spotted with deep craters. The planet is not fully visible as black space surrounds the moon, and a shadow envelops the right side of its surface.⁣
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Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute⁣
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#Frozen #Space #Saturn #SolarSystem #Cassini #Oceans #Cold #Icy #NASA

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## Tags

nasa, cold, space, icy, cassini, saturn, solarsystem, oceans, frozen

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