The Cassini spacecraft captured Enceladus backlit by the Sun on November 1, 2009, revealing plumes of material erupting from the south pole of Saturn's 500-kilometer-diameter moon. The dramatic silhouette imaging shows the icy jets continuously shooting into space.
Cassini discovered these plumes in 2005. Scientists believe the plumes connect to a subsurface ocean beneath Enceladus' ice shell. The ejected material feeds directly into Saturn's outer E ring and makes Enceladus' surface as reflective as snow.
The image also shows Saturn's icy rings scattering sunlight. Pandora, an 80-kilometer-diameter moon, appears faintly lit by reflected light from Saturn on the night side of the moon, visible in the lower right of the frame.