I like your idea that Hyperion is a captured comet. That could explain many of the recent findings. According to the saturn.jpl.nasa.gov website, they’ve found evidence of hydrocarbons on the surface.

“Of special interest is the presence on Hyperion of hydrocarbons–combinations of carbon and hydrogen atoms that are found in comets, meteorites, and the dust in our galaxy,” said Dale Cruikshank, a planetary scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., and the paper’s lead author.

The latest hi-res images do certainly give it a sponge-like appearance. However, in many of the videos, the moon has a more solid-looking surface. Probably due to lower-resolution images?

Interesting, if true.

To me, it seems the impact has been a very low angle event. The lower smoother surface is either “recent” or there are considerable dust covered irregularities. It also appears to be not as steep as the opposite escarpment. Squinting at the whole image, (the higher res version), it seems as though the central core is partly visible, though it has suffered a large impact crater. The question is, where is the evidence for any remnant of the impact? Or is it actually the only reasonably solid mass in Hyperion’s make-up?

Of course the deep “shafts” could be the burrowings of Dune like Worms, or the biggest termites ever!

Ivan.