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Timing of water plume eruptions on Enceladus explained by interior viscosity structure

Nimmo, Francis; Porco, Carolyn; Čadek, Ondřej +3 more

At the south pole of Saturn's icy moon Enceladus, eruptions of water vapour and ice emanate from warm tectonic ridges. Observations in the infrared and visible spectra have shown an orbital modulation of the plume brightness, which suggests that the eruption activity is influenced by tidal forces. However, the observed activity seems to be delayed…