IT’S 1671… BEHOLD LAPETUS!

Tony Journal 26/10/2011 1 Minute

On this day in 1671, Giovanni Cassini discovered Lapetus, a moon of Saturn.

He observed the moon over the years, and eventually discovered that it is unique due to having both a dark and a light hemisphere.

For centuries we’ve been trying to figure out why Lapetus has this feature, and we’ve yet to crack it.

The two theories that seem most likely so far:

1. That the darker hemisphere has simply collected dirty space dust from other bodies, for instance sister moon Phoebe.

2. The darker matter could be material from the moon’s core that has erupted over time.

Lapetus is odd-shaped and mostly ice.

And to this day, we know little more than Cassini did…

(Image: The mountains on Lapetus)

Published by Tony

Tony Healey is the author of the bestselling Harper & Lane Series, consisting of Hope’s Peak, Storm’s Edge and Blue Ruin, published by Thomas and Mercer. He is also the author of westerns in the Ralph Compton Western Series, including The Devil’s Snare, Blood On The Prairie, and Die Trying. He has several works published independently, including the crime novel Not For Us. Tony Healey lives and works in Brighton, on the Sussex coast. He is married, has four daughters and a chorkie called Freddy. Tony is represented by his agent, Sharon Pelletier of Dystel, Goderich & Bourrett LLC. The Harper & Lane Series: https://amzn.to/3hCmqoJ Ralph Compton Westerns: Tony Healey | Penguin Random House Not For Us: https://amzn.to/3hEimo0 View all posts by Tony

Published 26/10/2011

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