Jacques van Oene
January 21st 05, 07:40 PM
N° 05-2005 - Paris, 21 January 2005
Seeing, touching and smelling the extraordinarily Earth-like world of Titan
On 14 January ESA's Huygens probe made an historic first ever descent to the
surface of Titan, 1.2 billion kilometres from Earth and the largest of
Saturn's moons. Huygens travelled to Titan as part of the joint ESA/NASA/ASI
Cassini-Huygens mission. Starting at about 150 kilometres altitude, six
multi-function instruments on board Huygens recorded data during the descent
and on the surface. The first scientific assessments of Huygens' data were
presented during a press conference at ESA head office in Paris on 21
January.
"We now have the key to understanding what shapes Titan's landscape," said
Dr Martin Tomasko, Principal Investigator for the Descent Imager-Spectral
Radiometer (DISR), adding: "Geological evidence for precipitation, erosion,
mechanical abrasion and other fluvial activity says that the physical
processes shaping Titan are much the same as those shaping Earth."
Spectacular images captured by the DISR reveal that Titan has
extraordinarily Earth-like meteorology and geology. Images have shown a
complex network of narrow drainage channels running from brighter highlands
to lower, flatter, dark regions. These channels merge into river systems
running into lakebeds featuring offshore 'islands' and 'shoals' remarkably
similar to those on Earth.
Data provided in part by the Gas Chromatograph and Mass Spectrometer (GCMS)
and Surface Science Package (SSP) support Dr Tomasko's conclusions. Huygens'
data provide strong evidence for liquids flowing on Titan. However, the
fluid involved is methane, a simple organic compound that can exist as a
liquid or gas at Titan's sub-170°C temperatures, rather than water as on
Earth.
Titan's rivers and lakes appear dry at the moment, but rain may have
occurred not long ago.
Deceleration and penetration data provided by the SSP indicate that the
material beneath the surface's crust has the consistency of loose sand,
possibly the result of methane rain falling on the surface over eons, or the
wicking of liquids from below towards the surface.
Heat generated by Huygens warmed the soil beneath the probe and both the
GCMS and SSP detected bursts of methane gas boiled out of surface material,
reinforcing methane's principal role in Titan's geology and atmospheric
meteorology -- forming clouds and precipitation that erodes and abrades the
surface.
In addition, DISR surface images show small rounded pebbles in a dry
riverbed. Spectra measurements (colour) are consistent with a composition of
dirty water ice rather than silicate rocks. However, these are rock-like
solid at Titan's temperatures.
Titan's soil appears to consist at least in part of precipitated deposits of
the organic haze that shrouds the planet. This dark material settles out of
the atmosphere. When washed off high elevations by methane rain, it
concentrates at the bottom of the drainage channels and riverbeds
contributing to the dark areas seen in DISR images.
New, stunning evidence based on finding atmospheric argon 40 indicates that
Titan has experienced volcanic activity generating not lava, as on Earth,
but water ice and ammonia.
Thus, while many of Earth's familiar geophysical processes occur on Titan,
the chemistry involved is quite different. Instead of liquid water, Titan
has liquid methane. Instead of silicate rocks, Titan has frozen water ice.
Instead of dirt, Titan has hydrocarbon particles settling out of the
atmosphere, and instead of lava, Titanian volcanoes spew very cold ice.
Titan is an extraordinary world having Earth-like geophysical processes
operating on exotic materials in very alien conditions.
"We are really extremely excited about these results. The scientists have
worked tirelessly for the whole week because the data they have received
from Huygens are so thrilling. This is only the beginning, these data will
live for many years to come and they will keep the scientists very very
busy", said Jean-Pierre Lebreton, ESA's Huygens Project Scientist and
Mission manager.
The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperation between NASA, ESA and ASI, the
Italian space agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), a division of the
California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, is managing the mission for
NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington DC. JPL designed, developed and
assembled the Cassini orbiter while ESA operated the Huygens atmospheric
probe.
For further information, please contact :
ESA Media Relations Division
Tel: +33(0)1.53.69.7155
Fax: +33(0)1.53.69.7690
--
--------------
Jacques :-)
www.spacepatches.info
Seeing, touching and smelling the extraordinarily Earth-like world of Titan
On 14 January ESA's Huygens probe made an historic first ever descent to the
surface of Titan, 1.2 billion kilometres from Earth and the largest of
Saturn's moons. Huygens travelled to Titan as part of the joint ESA/NASA/ASI
Cassini-Huygens mission. Starting at about 150 kilometres altitude, six
multi-function instruments on board Huygens recorded data during the descent
and on the surface. The first scientific assessments of Huygens' data were
presented during a press conference at ESA head office in Paris on 21
January.
"We now have the key to understanding what shapes Titan's landscape," said
Dr Martin Tomasko, Principal Investigator for the Descent Imager-Spectral
Radiometer (DISR), adding: "Geological evidence for precipitation, erosion,
mechanical abrasion and other fluvial activity says that the physical
processes shaping Titan are much the same as those shaping Earth."
Spectacular images captured by the DISR reveal that Titan has
extraordinarily Earth-like meteorology and geology. Images have shown a
complex network of narrow drainage channels running from brighter highlands
to lower, flatter, dark regions. These channels merge into river systems
running into lakebeds featuring offshore 'islands' and 'shoals' remarkably
similar to those on Earth.
Data provided in part by the Gas Chromatograph and Mass Spectrometer (GCMS)
and Surface Science Package (SSP) support Dr Tomasko's conclusions. Huygens'
data provide strong evidence for liquids flowing on Titan. However, the
fluid involved is methane, a simple organic compound that can exist as a
liquid or gas at Titan's sub-170°C temperatures, rather than water as on
Earth.
Titan's rivers and lakes appear dry at the moment, but rain may have
occurred not long ago.
Deceleration and penetration data provided by the SSP indicate that the
material beneath the surface's crust has the consistency of loose sand,
possibly the result of methane rain falling on the surface over eons, or the
wicking of liquids from below towards the surface.
Heat generated by Huygens warmed the soil beneath the probe and both the
GCMS and SSP detected bursts of methane gas boiled out of surface material,
reinforcing methane's principal role in Titan's geology and atmospheric
meteorology -- forming clouds and precipitation that erodes and abrades the
surface.
In addition, DISR surface images show small rounded pebbles in a dry
riverbed. Spectra measurements (colour) are consistent with a composition of
dirty water ice rather than silicate rocks. However, these are rock-like
solid at Titan's temperatures.
Titan's soil appears to consist at least in part of precipitated deposits of
the organic haze that shrouds the planet. This dark material settles out of
the atmosphere. When washed off high elevations by methane rain, it
concentrates at the bottom of the drainage channels and riverbeds
contributing to the dark areas seen in DISR images.
New, stunning evidence based on finding atmospheric argon 40 indicates that
Titan has experienced volcanic activity generating not lava, as on Earth,
but water ice and ammonia.
Thus, while many of Earth's familiar geophysical processes occur on Titan,
the chemistry involved is quite different. Instead of liquid water, Titan
has liquid methane. Instead of silicate rocks, Titan has frozen water ice.
Instead of dirt, Titan has hydrocarbon particles settling out of the
atmosphere, and instead of lava, Titanian volcanoes spew very cold ice.
Titan is an extraordinary world having Earth-like geophysical processes
operating on exotic materials in very alien conditions.
"We are really extremely excited about these results. The scientists have
worked tirelessly for the whole week because the data they have received
from Huygens are so thrilling. This is only the beginning, these data will
live for many years to come and they will keep the scientists very very
busy", said Jean-Pierre Lebreton, ESA's Huygens Project Scientist and
Mission manager.
The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperation between NASA, ESA and ASI, the
Italian space agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), a division of the
California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, is managing the mission for
NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington DC. JPL designed, developed and
assembled the Cassini orbiter while ESA operated the Huygens atmospheric
probe.
For further information, please contact :
ESA Media Relations Division
Tel: +33(0)1.53.69.7155
Fax: +33(0)1.53.69.7690
--
--------------
Jacques :-)
www.spacepatches.info