Epimetheus

Saturn XI

   Epimetheus ( "ep eh MEE thee us" ) is the fifth of Saturn's known satellites:
        orbit:    151,422 km from Saturn
        diameter: 115 km (144 x 108 x 98)
        mass:     5.6e17 kg
   Epimetheus was the son of Iapetus and brother of Prometheus and Atlas; husband of Pandora. "Epimetheus" is Greek for "hindsight".

   Discovered by Walker, Larson, and Fountain in 1978 and confirmed in 1980 by Voyager 1. It was probably also observed by both Walker and Dollfus in 1966 when they discovered Janus.

   Epimetheus and Janus are "co-orbital".

   There are several craters larger than 30 km in diameter as well as both large and small ridges and grooves. The extensive cratering indicates the Epimetheus must be quite old.

   The dark line across the surface in the image above is actually the shadow of the Saturn's F-ring.

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Contents ... Saturn ... Pandora ... Epimetheus ... Janus ... Data Host

Bill Arnett; last updated: 1996 Aug 2