The white and blue colors outline areas that have been blanketed by fine, icy dust ejected at the time crater Pwyll (some 1,000 kilometers to the south) formed. A few small craters (less than 500 meters or 547 yards in diameter) are also associated with these regions. They were probably formed, at the same time the blanketing occured, by large, intact blocks of ice thrown up in the impact explosion that formed Pwyll. The unblanketed surface has a reddish-brown color due to mineral contaminants which were carried and spread by water vapor released from the crust. The original color of Europa's icy surface was probably a deep blue. The colors in this picture have been enhanced to show detail.
JPL / NASA