Some of this dark material probably moved down the flanks of the ridges, and has piled up along their bases. The most prominent ridges are about a kilometer in width. Several deep fractures cut through this ridge and continue into the plains. The brightness of the region suggests that frost covers much of Europa's surface. This image looks different from those obtained earlier in Galileo's mission, because this image was taken with the Sun higher in Europa's sky.
North is to the top of the picture, and the sun illuminates the surface from the upper left.
Dark and bright ridges on Europa This high resolution image shows two prominent ridges, which have different characteristics. The youngest ridge runs from left to top right across the image, and is about 5 km in width. The ridge has two bright, raised rims and a central valley. The rims of the ridge are rough in texture. The inner and outer walls show bright and dark debris streaming downslope, some of it forming broad fans.