Now That’s a Moon!

Mimas: Saturn's fully operational "Death Star" moon

Just released today, this portrait of Saturn’s moon Mimas showcases its striking similarity to the Death Star (pre-proton torpedoes of course). The Cassini imaging team has been hard at work processing the images from last month’s flyby and the results sure don’t disappoint!

On February 13 Cassini passed Mimas at a distance of 5,900 miles and took lots of high-res images of the 250-mile-wide moon’s heavily cratered surface. Especially prominent on Mimas is the 80-mile-wide Herschel crater, which dominates its northern hemisphere and gives it its definitive space-station look.

Great job Cassini team! Click the image for a life-size view (not really but darn close) and check out more processed photos from the flyby here.

Image: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute