Can Cassini's radar verify of liquid water is on Enceladus?

[willpittenger]

Cassini recently found evidence of liquid water on Saturn's moon Enceladus. Since MRO's radar was designed to detect water, I have to wonder if Cassini could use it's radar in the same way to confirm those readings. I have no idea if Enceladus will be in range. I understand Saturn itself was too far away. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <hr style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em" />Will Pittenger<hr style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em" />Add this user box to your Wikipedia User Page to show your support for the SDC forums: <div style="margin-left:1em">{{User:Will Pittenger/User Boxes/Space.com Account}}</div> </div>

 

[centsworth_II]

The excitement about water "on" Enceladus is about <b>near surface</b> water. This water would still be at least hundreds of meters deep and out of reach of Cassini radar. There is no serious suggestion of any liquid water on the ultra cold surface. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[willpittenger]

Well, that is why you use a radar rather than a camera. I was not expecting surface water. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <hr style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em" />Will Pittenger<hr style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em" />Add this user box to your Wikipedia User Page to show your support for the SDC forums: <div style="margin-left:1em">{{User:Will Pittenger/User Boxes/Space.com Account}}</div> </div>

 

[centsworth_II]

I don't think Cassini's radar can see much below the surface. Sub-surface radar is a specialized instrument that Cassini does not have. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[willpittenger]

All I knew was that both were radars. Just because one has a different name does not mean it has different capabilities. I figured the main factor would be frequency and on-board processing capabilities. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <hr style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em" />Will Pittenger<hr style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em" />Add this user box to your Wikipedia User Page to show your support for the SDC forums: <div style="margin-left:1em">{{User:Will Pittenger/User Boxes/Space.com Account}}</div> </div>

 

[hansolo0]

While I'm glad for any publicity in the world of space and astronomy, I don't understand why there's so much press on this right now. Wasn't this stuff about Saturn's moon know some time ago about the jet's of ice and water, etc?<br />Maybe as long ago as a year or more?

 

[CalliArcale]

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr /><p>All I knew was that both were radars. Just because one has a different name does not mean it has different capabilities. I figured the main factor would be frequency and on-board processing capabilities.<p><hr /></p></p></blockquote><br /><br />Cassini's radar is basically a cunning alternate use of the High Gain Antenna; I understand it was a late mod to the spacecraft to enable radar studies. Very similar to the Magellan radar, I believe, which also used its HGA as a radar instrument. (Fast fact: Magellan was built largely from Voyager spares -- including the spacecraft bus and the HGA.) MRO's radar is more sophisticated. Additionally, MRO will have more favorable conditions for radar; Cassini's radar acquisitions are limited by the speed at which it flies past its targets, and the very short times of the flybys. MRO (like Mars Express, which also has ground-penetrating radar) can really take its time, acquiring data on many passes. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>

 

[willpittenger]

Too bad it would not work. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <hr style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em" />Will Pittenger<hr style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em" />Add this user box to your Wikipedia User Page to show your support for the SDC forums: <div style="margin-left:1em">{{User:Will Pittenger/User Boxes/Space.com Account}}</div> </div>

 

[centsworth_II]

<font color="yellow">"I don't understand why there's so much press on this right now." -- hansolo0</font><br /><br />The short answer is because right now is when NASA/JPL put out the press release. <br /><br />The long answer would be to talk about the time between the making of interesting observations, the development of theories based on those observations, and the announcement of a consensus theory emerging out of thorough anaysis of the data, exchanges of ideas, further observations, etc. Many of us here may follow the process through all those steps. Many others remain unaware of Cassini until such press releases are made.<br /><br /><br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>