Moon Titan Research Articles

Bathymetry and composition of Titan's Ontario Lacus derived from Monte Carlo-based waveform inversion of Cassini RADAR altimetry data

Recently, the Cassini RADAR was used to sound hydrocarbon lakes and seas on Saturn's moon Titan. Since the initial discovery of echoes from the seabed of Ligeia Mare, the second largest liquid body on Titan, a dedicated radar processing chain has been developed to retrieve liquid depth and microwave absorptivity information from RADAR altimetry of Titan's lakes and seas. Herein, we apply this processing chain to altimetry data acquired over southern Ontario Lacus during Titan fly-by T49 in December 2008. The new signal processing chain adopts super resolution techniques and dedicated taper functions to reveal the presence of reflection from Ontario's lakebed. Unfortunately, the extracted waveforms from T49 are often distorted due to signal saturation, owing to the extraordinarily strong specular reflections from the smooth lake surface. This distortion is a function of the saturation level and can introduce artifacts, such as signal precursors, which complicate data interpretation. We use a radar altimetry simulator to retrieve information from the saturated bursts and determine the liquid depth and loss tangent of Ontario Lacus. Received waveforms are represented using a two-layer model, where Cassini raw radar data are simulated in order to reproduce the effects of receiver saturation. A Monte Carlo based approach along with a simulated waveform look-up table is used to retrieve parameters that are given as inputs to a parametric model which constrains radio absorption of Ontario Lacus and retrieves information about the dielectric properties of the liquid. We retrieve a maximum depth of 50 m along the radar transect and a best-fit specific attenuation of the liquid equal to 0.2 ± 0.09 dB m−1 that, when converted into loss tangent, gives tanδ = 7 ± 3 × 10−5. When combined with laboratory measured cryogenic liquid alkane dielectric properties and the variable solubility of nitrogen in ethane-methane mixtures, the best-fit loss tangent is consistent with a ternary mixture of 51% methane, 38% ethane and 11% nitrogen by volume.

An analytical solubility model for nitrogen–methane–ethane ternary mixtures

Saturn's moon Titan has surface liquids of liquid hydrocarbons and a thick, cold, nitrogen atmosphere, and is a target for future exploration. Critical to the design and operation of vehicles for this environment is knowledge of the amount of dissolved nitrogen gas within the cryogenic liquid methane and ethane seas. This paper rigorously reviews experimental data on the vapor-liquid equilibrium of nitrogen/methane/ethane mixtures, noting the possibility for split liquid phases, and presents simple analytical models for conveniently predicting solubility of nitrogen in pure liquid ethane, pure liquid methane, and a mixture of liquid ethane and methane. Model coefficients are fit to three temperature ranges near the critical point, intermediate range, and near the freezing point to permit accurate predictions across the full range of thermodynamic conditions. The models are validated against the consolidated database of 2356 experimental data points, with mean absolute error between data and model less than 8% for both binary nitrogen/methane and nitrogen/ethane systems, and less than 17% for the ternary nitrogen/methane/ethane system. The model can be used to predict the mole fractions of ethane, methane, and nitrogen as a function of location within the Titan seas.

Could a Newfound Molecule on Titan Be a Building Block for Life?

The discovery of vinyl cyanide in the atmosphere of Saturn’s moon Titan has huge implications for life—but not as we know it.

Resolving Orbital and Climate Keys of Earth and Extraterrestrial Environments with Dynamics (ROCKE-3D) 1.0: A General Circulation Model for Simulating the Climates of Rocky Planets

Abstract Resolving Orbital and Climate Keys of Earth and Extraterrestrial Environments with Dynamics (ROCKE-3D) is a three-dimensional General Circulation Model (GCM) developed at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies for the modeling of atmospheres of solar system and exoplanetary terrestrial planets. Its parent model, known as ModelE2, is used to simulate modern Earth and near-term paleo-Earth climates. ROCKE-3D is an ongoing effort to expand the capabilities of ModelE2 to handle a broader range of atmospheric conditions, including higher and lower atmospheric pressures, more diverse chemistries and compositions, larger and smaller planet radii and gravity, different rotation rates (from slower to more rapid than modern Earth’s, including synchronous rotation), diverse ocean and land distributions and topographies, and potential basic biosphere functions. The first aim of ROCKE-3D is to model planetary atmospheres on terrestrial worlds within the solar system such as paleo-Earth, modern and paleo-Mars, paleo-Venus, and Saturn’s moon Titan. By validating the model for a broad range of temperatures, pressures, and atmospheric constituents, we can then further expand its capabilities to those exoplanetary rocky worlds that have been discovered in the past, as well as those to be discovered in the future. We also discuss the current and near-future capabilities of ROCKE-3D as a community model for studying planetary and exoplanetary atmospheres.

Electrification of sand on Titan and its influence on sediment transport

Triboelectric, or frictional, charging is a ubiquitous yet poorly understood phenomenon in granular flows. Recognized in terrestrial volcanic plumes and sand storms, such electrification mechanisms are possibly present on Titan. There, dunes and plains of low-density organic particles blanket extensive regions of the surface. Unlike Earth, Titan hosts granular reservoirs whose physical and chemical properties possibly enhance the effects of charging on particle motion. Here we demonstrate in laboratory tumbler experiments under atmospheric conditions and using organic materials analogous to Titan that Titan sands can readily charge triboelectrically. We suggest that the resulting electrostatic forces are strong enough to promote aggregation of granular materials and affect sediment transport on Titan. Indeed, our experiments show that electrostatic forces may increase the saltation threshold for grains by up to an order of magnitude. Efficient electrification may explain puzzling observations on Titan such as the mismatch between dune orientations and inferred wind fields. We conclude that, unlike other Solar System bodies, nanometre-scale electrostatic processes may shape the geomorphological features of Titan across the moon’s surface. Frictional charging of granular materials may readily occur on Saturn’s moon Titan. Laboratory experiments under Titan-like conditions suggest that the resulting electrostatic forces are strong enough to affect sand transport on Titan.

Ocean worlds exploration

Ocean worlds is the label given to objects in the solar system that host stable, globe-girdling bodies of liquid water—“oceans”. Of these, the Earth is the only one to support its oceans on the surface, making it a model for habitable planets around other stars but not for habitable worlds elsewhere in the solar system. Elsewhere in the solar system, three objects—Jupiter's moon Europa, and Saturn's moons Enceladus and Titan—have subsurface oceans whose existence has been detected or inferred by two independent spacecraft techniques. A host of other bodies in the outer solar system are inferred by a single type of observation or by theoretical modeling to have subsurface oceans. This paper focusses on the three best-documented water oceans beyond Earth: those within Europa, Titan and Enceladus. Of these, Europa's is closest to the surface (less than 10km and possibly less than 1km in places), and hence potentially best suited for eventual direct exploration. Enceladus’ ocean is deeper—5–40km below its surface—but fractures beneath the south pole of this moon allow ice and gas from the ocean to escape to space where it has been sampled by mass spectrometers aboard the Cassini Saturn Orbiter. Titan's ocean is the deepest—perhaps 50–100km—and no evidence for plumes or ice volcanism exist on the surface. In terms of the search for evidence of life within these oceans, the plume of ice and gas emanating from Enceladus makes this the moon of choice for a fast-track program to search for life. If plumes exist on Europa—yet to be confirmed—or places can be located where ocean water is extruded onto the surface, then the search for life on this lunar-sized body can also be accomplished quickly by the standards of outer solar system exploration.

Our evolving understanding of aeolian bedforms, based on observation of dunes on different worlds

Dunes, dune fields, and ripples are unique and useful records of the interaction between wind and granular materials – finding such features on a planetary surface immediately suggests certain information about climate and surface conditions (at least during the dunes’ formation and evolution). Additionally, studies of dune characteristics under non-Earth conditions allow for “tests” of aeolian process models based primarily on observations of terrestrial features and dynamics, and refinement of the models to include consideration of a wider range of environmental and planetary conditions. To-date, the planetary aeolian community has found and studied dune fields on Mars, Venus, and the Saturnian moon Titan. Additionally, we have observed candidate “aeolian bedforms” on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, the Jovian moon Io, and – most recently – Pluto. In this paper, we hypothesize that the progression of investigations of aeolian bedforms and processes on a particular planetary body follows a consistent sequence – primarily set by the acquisition of data of particular types and resolutions, and by the maturation of knowledge about that planetary body. We define that sequence of generated knowledge and new questions (within seven investigation phases) and discuss examples from all of the studied bodies. The aim of such a sequence is to better define our past and current state of understanding about the aeolian bedforms of a particular body, to highlight the related assumptions that require re-analysis with data acquired during later investigations, and to use lessons learned from planetary and terrestrial aeolian studies to predict what types of investigations could be most fruitful in the future.

Frozen Orbits with Equatorial Perturbing Bodies: The Case of Ganymede, Callisto, and Titan

Following an approach based on the Milankovitch elements, equations able to describe the long-term evolution of the trajectory of a probe orbiting a celestial body (primary body) have been analytically determined, taking into account the perturbative effects deriving from the planetary oblateness and from one or more perturbing bodies lying on the equatorial plane of the primary body. Using these equations, three families of orbits, characterized by constant orbit elements on average, have been obtained. Whereas the first family, composed of elliptical polar orbits, ensures frozen conditions on all the orbit elements, the other two lead to null variations of semimajor axis, eccentricity, inclination, and argument of pericenter. For the latter two families, the concept of critical inclination, which, in the case of only planetary oblateness, assumes the well-known values 63.43 and 116.57 deg, has been generalized adding the effect of several attracting bodies. Interesting solutions have been found for the observation of Jupiter’s moons Ganymede and Callisto and for Saturn’s moon Titan.

Polymorphism and electronic structure of polyimine and its potential significance for prebiotic chemistry on Titan

The chemistry of hydrogen cyanide (HCN) is believed to be central to the origin of life question. Contradictions between Cassini-Huygens mission measurements of the atmosphere and the surface of Saturn's moon Titan suggest that HCN-based polymers may have formed on the surface from products of atmospheric chemistry. This makes Titan a valuable "natural laboratory" for exploring potential nonterrestrial forms of prebiotic chemistry. We have used theoretical calculations to investigate the chain conformations of polyimine (pI), a polymer identified as one major component of polymerized HCN in laboratory experiments. Thanks to its flexible backbone, the polymer can exist in several different polymorphs, which are relatively close in energy. The electronic and structural variability among them is extraordinary. The band gap changes over a 3-eV range when moving from a planar sheet-like structure to increasingly coiled conformations. The primary photon absorption is predicted to occur in a window of relative transparency in Titan's atmosphere, indicating that pI could be photochemically active and drive chemistry on the surface. The thermodynamics for adding and removing HCN from pI under Titan conditions suggests that such dynamics is plausible, provided that catalysis or photochemistry is available to sufficiently lower reaction barriers. We speculate that the directionality of pI's intermolecular and intramolecular =N-H(…)N hydrogen bonds may drive the formation of partially ordered structures, some of which may synergize with photon absorption and act catalytically. Future detailed studies on proposed mechanisms and the solubility and density of the polymers will aid in the design of future missions to Titan.

The influence of subsurface flow on lake formation and north polar lake distribution on Titan

Observations of lakes, fluvial dissection of the surface, rapid variations in cloud cover, and lake shoreline changes indicate that Saturn's moon Titan is hydrologically active, with a hydrocarbon-based hydrological cycle dominated by liquid methane. Here we use a numerical model to investigate the Titan hydrological cycle – including surface, subsurface, and atmospheric components – in order to investigate the underlying causes of the observed distribution and sizes of lakes in the north polar region. The hydrocarbon-based hydrological cycle is modeled using a numerical subsurface flow model and analytical runoff scheme, driven by a general circulation model with an active methane-cycle. This model is run on synthetically generated topography that matches the fractal character of the observed topography, without explicit representation of the effects of erosion and deposition. At the scale of individual basins, intermediate to high permeability (10−8–10−6cm2) aquifers are required to reproduce the observed large stable lakes. However, at the scale of the entire north polar lake district, a high permeability aquifer results in the rapid flushing of methane through the aquifer from high polar latitudes to dry lower polar latitudes, where methane is removed by evaporation, preventing large lakes from forming. In contrast, an intermediate permeability aquifer slows the subsurface flow from high polar latitudes, allowing greater lake areas. The observed distribution of lakes is best matched by either a uniform intermediate permeability aquifer, or a combination of a high permeability cap at high latitudes surrounded by an intermediate permeability aquifer at lower latitudes, as could arise due to karstic processes at the north pole. The stability of Kraken Mare further requires reduction of the evaporation rate over the sea to 1% of the value predicted by the general circulation model, likely as a result of dissolved ethane, nitrogen, or organic solutes, and/or a climatic lake effect. These results reveal that subsurface flow through aquifers plays an important role in Titan's hydrological cycle, and exerts a strong influence over the distribution, size, and volatile budgets of Titan's lakes.

A co-crystal between benzene and ethane: a potential evaporite material for Saturn's moon Titan.

Using synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction, the structure of a co-crystal between benzene and ethane formed in situ at cryogenic conditions has been determined, and validated using dispersion-corrected density functional theory calculations. The structure comprises a lattice of benzene molecules hosting ethane molecules within channels. Similarity between the intermolecular interactions found in the co-crystal and in pure benzene indicate that the C-H⋯π network of benzene is maintained in the co-crystal, however, this expands to accommodate the guest ethane molecules. The co-crystal has a 3:1 benzene:ethane stoichiometry and is described in the space group [Formula: see text] with a = 15.977 (1) Å and c = 5.581 (1) Å at 90 K, with a density of 1.067 g cm(-3). The conditions under which this co-crystal forms identify it is a potential that forms from evaporation of Saturn's moon Titan's lakes, an evaporite material.

Waves may ripple across methane seas of Saturn’s moon Titan

Waves may ripple across methane seas of Saturn’s moon Titan

Numerical study of tides in Ontario Lacus, a hydrocarbon lake on the surface of the Saturnian moon Titan

In the context of the emergence of extraterrestrial oceanography, we adapted an existing oceanographic model, SLIM (www.climate.be/slim), to the conditions of Titan, a moon of Saturn. The tidal response of the largest southern lake at Titan’s surface, namely Ontario Lacus, is simulated. SLIM solves the 2D, depth-averaged shallow water equations on an unstructured mesh using the discontinuous Galerkin finite element method, which allows for high spatial resolution wherever needed. The impact of the wind forcing, the bathymetry, and the bottom friction is also discussed. The predicted maximum tidal range is about 0.56 m in the southern part of the lake, which is more than twice as large as the previous estimates (see Tokano, Ocean Dyn 60:(4) 803–817 doi:10.1007/s10236-010-0285-3 2010). The patterns and magnitude of the current are also markedly different from those of previous studies: the tidal motion is not aligned with the major axis of the lake and the speed is larger nearshore. Indeed, the main tidal component rotates clockwise in an exact period of one Titan day and the tidal currents can reach 0.046 ms−1 close to the shores depending on the geometry and the bathymetry. Except for these specific nearshore regions, the current speed is less than 0.02 ms−1. Circular patterns can be observed offshore, their rotational direction and size varying along the day.

Cryolava flow destabilization of crustal methane clathrate hydrate on Titan

To date, there has been no conclusive observation of ongoing endogenous volcanic activity on Saturn's moon Titan. However, with time, Titan's atmospheric methane is lost and must be replenished. We have modeled one possible mechanism for the replenishment of Titan's methane loss. Cryolavas can supply enough heat to release large amounts of methane from methane clathrate hydrates (MCH). The volume of methane released is controlled by the flow thickness and its areal extent. The depth of the destabilisation layer is typically ≈30% of the thickness of the lava flow (≈3m for a 10-m thick flow). For this flow example, a maximum of 372kg of methane is released per m2 of flow area. Such an event would release methane for nearly a year. One or two events per year covering ∼20km2 would be sufficient to resupply atmospheric methane. A much larger effusive event covering an area of ≈9000km2 with flows 200m thick would release enough methane to sustain current methane concentrations for 10,000 years. The minimum size of “cryo-flows” sufficient to maintain the current atmospheric methane is small enough that their detection with current instruments (e.g., Cassini) could be challenging. We do not suggest that Titan's original atmosphere was generated by this mechanism. It is unlikely that small-scale surface MCH destabilisation is solely responsible for long-term (> a few Myr) sustenance of Titan's atmospheric methane, but rather we present it as a possible contributor to Titan's past and current atmospheric methane.

Alluvial and fluvial fans on Saturn's moon Titan reveal processes, materials and regional geology

Abstract Fans, landforms that record the storage and transport of sediment from uplands to depositional basins, are found on Saturn's moon Titan, a body of significantly different process rates and material compositions from Earth. Images obtained by the Cassini spacecraft's synthetic aperture radar reveal morphologies, roughness, textural patterns and other properties consistent with fan analogues on Earth also viewed by synthetic aperture radar. The observed fan characteristics on Titan reveal some regions of high relative relief and others with gentle slopes over hundreds of kilometres, exposing topographic variations and influences on fan formation. There is evidence for a range of particle sizes across proximal to distal fan regions, from c. 2 cm or more to fine-grained, which can provide details on sedimentary processes. Some features are best described as alluvial fans, which implies their proximity to high-relief source areas, while others are more likely to be fluvial fans, drawing from larger catchment areas and frequently characterized by more prolonged runoff events. The presence of fans corroborates the vast liquid storage capacity of the atmosphere and the resultant episodic behaviour. Fans join the growing list of landforms on Titan derived from atmospheric and fluvial processes similar to those on Earth, strengthening comparisons between these two planetary bodies.

Hybrid simulation of Titan's interaction with the supersonic solar wind during Cassini's T96 flyby

AbstractBy applying a hybrid (kinetic ions and fluid electrons) simulation code, we study the plasma environment of Saturn's largest moon Titan during Cassini's T96 flyby on 1 December 2013. The T96 encounter marks the only observed event of the entire Cassini mission where Titan was located in the supersonic solar wind in front of Saturn's bow shock. Our simulations can quantitatively reproduce the key features of Cassini magnetic field and electron density observations during this encounter. We demonstrate that the large‐scale features of Titan's induced magnetosphere during T96 can be described in terms of a steady state interaction with a high‐pressure solar wind flow. About 40 min before the encounter, Cassini observed a rotation of the incident solar wind magnetic field by almost 90°. We provide strong evidence that this rotation left a bundle of fossilized magnetic field lines in Titan's ionosphere that was subsequently detected by the spacecraft.

Carbonization in Titan Tholins: implication for low albedo on surfaces of Centaurs and trans-Neptunian objects

AbstractAstronomical observations of Centaurs and trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) yield two characteristic features – near-infrared (NIR) reflectance and low geometric albedo. The first feature apparently originates due to complex organic material on their surfaces, but the origin of the material contributing to low albedo is not well understood. Titan tholins synthesized to simulate aerosols in the atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan have also been used for simulating the NIR reflectances of several Centaurs and TNOs. Here, we report novel detections of large polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, nanoscopic soot aggregates and cauliflower-like graphite within Titan tholins. We put forth a proof of concept stating the surfaces of Centaurs and TNOs may perhaps comprise of highly ‘carbonized’ complex organic material, analogous to the tholins we investigated. Such material would apparently be capable of contributing to the NIR reflectances and to the low geometric albedos simultaneously.

’s Revolutionary Titan Landing

Ten years ago, in our solar system far, far away, a spacecraft orbiting Saturn dispatched a small probe to an unexplored world—the moon Titan—an achievement that set off a space exploration revolution. The European Space Agency’s Huygens probe, carried by the National Aeronautics & Space Administration’s Cassini spacecraft, proceeded to land on Titan, which is Saturn’s largest moon and the only moon in our solar system with an atmosphere. Though Huygens’s lived only a couple of hours on Titan, the dusty orange images it radioed home unveiled a geomorphology that is Earth-like yet utterly alien: pebbles made of water ice, not rock; ridges covered with sticky hydrocarbon tholins, not dirt; and channels carved by rivers of methane, not water. Huygens’s success was particularly sweet because Titan’s thick nitrogen and methane atmosphere had previously thwarted astronomers’ attempts to look at the moon’s surface. The feat is still unmatched as the most ...

Stable Carbon Isotope Fractionation during Bacterial Acetylene Fermentation: Potential for Life Detection in Hydrocarbon-Rich Volatiles of Icy Planet(oid)s.

We report the first study of stable carbon isotope fractionation during microbial fermentation of acetylene (C2H2) in sediments, sediment enrichments, and bacterial cultures. Kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) averaged 3.7 ± 0.5‰ for slurries prepared with sediment collected at an intertidal mudflat in San Francisco Bay and 2.7 ± 0.2‰ for a pure culture of Pelobacter sp. isolated from these sediments. A similar KIE of 1.8 ± 0.7‰ was obtained for methanogenic enrichments derived from sediment collected at freshwater Searsville Lake, California. However, C2H2 uptake by a highly enriched mixed culture (strain SV7) obtained from Searsville Lake sediments resulted in a larger KIE of 9.0 ± 0.7‰. These are modest KIEs when compared with fractionation observed during oxidation of C1 compounds such as methane and methyl halides but are comparable to results obtained with other C2 compounds. These observations may be useful in distinguishing biologically active processes operating at distant locales in the Solar System where C2H2 is present. These locales include the surface of Saturn's largest moon Titan and the vaporous water- and hydrocarbon-rich jets emanating from Enceladus. Key Words: Acetylene—Fermentation—Isotope fractionation—Enceladus—Life detection. Astrobiology 15, 977–986.

Exploring the depths of Kraken Mare – Power, thermal analysis, and ballast control for the Saturn Titan submarine

To explore the depths of the hydrocarbon rich seas on the Saturn moon Titan, a conceptual design of an unmanned submarine concept was recently developed for a Phase I NASA Innovative Advanced Concept (NIAC) study. Data from Cassini Huygens indicates that the Titan polar environment sustains stable seas of variable concentrations of ethane, methane, and nitrogen, with a surface temperature around 93K. To meet science exploration objectives, the submarine must operate autonomously, study atmosphere/sea exchange, interact with the seabed at pressures up to 10atm, traverse large distances with limited energy, hover at the surface and at any depth within the sea, and be capable of tolerating multiple different concentration levels of hydrocarbons. Therefore Titan presents many cryogenic design challenges. This paper presents the trade studies with emphasis on the preliminary design of the power, thermal, and ballast control subsystems for the Saturn Titan submarine.