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Iapetus
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  Source credit: NASA/JPL/SSI (Cassini)

Moon of Saturn: Iapetus

Iapetus is the 3rd largest moon of planet Saturn, and has a massive equatorial ridge running three-quarters of the way around the moon, giving it the appearance of a walnut. Iapetus also has a striking two-tone coloration, with one hemisphere showing a bright water ice surface and the other hemisphere showing a dark color, possibly due to sublimation effects.

For a listing of all moons, see Moons of the Planets.

Iapetus Stats
      1. Mass (kg)
      2. 1.88e+21
      1. Radius (km)
      2. 730
      1. Density (gm/cm3)
      2. 1.21
      1. Distance from planet (km)
      2. 3,561,300
      1. Rotational period (days)
      2. 79.33018
      1. Orbital period (days)
      2. 79.33018
      1. Orbital velocity (km/sec)
      2. 79.33018
      1. Eccentricity of orbit
      2. 0.0283
      1. Inclination of orbit (°)
      2. 14.72
      1. Albedo
      2. 0.2
      1. Magnitude (Vo)
      2. 10.2-11.9
      1. Atmosphere


    Iapetus Surface Map

    Iapetus moon surface map