Saturn's ancient regular satellites
Emily. W. Wong, Ramon Brasser, Stephanie. C. Werner, Michelle. R., Kirchoff

TL;DR
This study uses advanced impact modeling and crater analysis to determine that Saturn's regular icy satellites are approximately 4.1 to 4.4 billion years old, indicating they are ancient and formed early in the Solar System's history.
Contribution
The paper introduces a new impact chronology model for Saturn's satellites based on high-resolution simulations and improved trans-Neptunian object data, providing consistent surface age estimates.
Findings
Surface ages range from 4.1 to 4.4 billion years.
Mimas and Enceladus are about 200 million years younger.
Crater production functions are similar across satellites.
Abstract
Are Saturn's regular satellites young or old? And how old are Enceladus' cratered plains? To answer these questions we computed model surface ages of the most heavily cratered terrains on Saturn's regular icy satellites using new high-resolution outer Solar System evolution simulations, and coupled with improved estimates of the trans-Neptunian objects populations. The output of the simulations allowed us to construct a model impact chronology onto Saturn which automatically applies to its regular satellites. We used crater densities and our impact chronology onto Saturn to construct model impact-crater isochrons, i.e., the scaling of the satellite crater production function with time. The surface ages derived for the cratered plains on Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione and Rhea range from 4.1 Ga to 4.4 Ga, with the surfaces of Mimas and Enceladus roughly 200 Myr younger than those of the…
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Taxonomy
TopicsAstro and Planetary Science · Geology and Paleoclimatology Research · Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
