From Galen Ives
Should I go rock climbing on the 6 kilometre peak of Saturn’s moon Mimas (20/27 December 2014, p 58), I think I’ll avoid the temptation to “simply leap off the top and float down to the surface”, as Rebecca Boyle suggests.
Even though Mimas has only about half a per cent of Earth’s gravity, a 6 km fall would be more than enough space in which to reach lethal velocity.
Assuming a vertical drop, my descent would take a little over 7 minutes, plenty of time to take a last look at my surroundings before slamming into the crater floor at 98 kph.
Sheffield, UK
