NASA Cassini Spacecraft Zooms in on Saturn's Moon Enceladus Today (VIDEO)

First Posted: Oct 14, 2015 12:01 PM EDT

NASA's Cassini spacecraft is getting some spectacular close-ups of Saturn's moon, Enceladus. Starting today, the spacecraft is starting a series of three close encounters, which will reveal some of the first close-up looks of the polar region of the moon.

Today's flyby is considered to be a moderately close approach for Cassini, which will pass at an altitude of just 1,142 miles above the surface of the moon. The spacecraft's final two approaches will occur later in late October and mid-December.

Cassini has already made some other encounters with the moon, though. In early-mission encounters, the northern terrain of Enceladus was masked by wintry darkness. Now, the summer sun is shining on the high northern latitudes, which will allow scientists to better see possible geological features on the surface of Enceladus.

In the moon's south pole region, scientists have already seen geyser-spouting, tiger-stripe fractures. Further features could reveal whether the north was also geologically active at some point.

"We've been following a trail of clues on Enceladus for 10 years now," said Bonnie Buratti, a Cassini science team member, in a news release. "The amount of activity on and beneath this moon's surface has been a huge surprise to us. We're still trying to figure out what its history has been, and how it came to be this way."

The encounter today will serve as a prelude to the main event, when the spacecraft will pass a mere 30 miles from the surface of the moon's south polar region on Oct. 28. During this encounter, Cassini will make its deepest-ever dive through the moon's plume of icy spray, collecting images and valuable information about the moon.

For more information about the Cassini mission, visit NASA's website.