April 25th 05, 09:56 PM
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2005-062
Carolina Martinez (818) 354-9382
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
2005-062
Organic Materials Spotted High Above Titan's Surface
April 25, 2005
During its closest flyby of Saturn's moon Titan on April 16, the
Cassini
spacecraft came within 1,027 kilometers (638 miles) of the moon's
surface and found that the outer layer of the thick, hazy atmosphere is
brimming with complex hydrocarbons.
Scientists believe that Titan's atmosphere may be a laboratory for
studying the organic chemistry that preceded life and provided the
building blocks for life on Earth. The role of the upper atmosphere in
this organic "factory" of hydrocarbons is very intriguing to
scientists,
especially given the large number of different hydrocarbons detected by
Cassini during the flyby.
Cassini's ion and neutral mass spectrometer detects charged and neutral
particles in the atmosphere. It provides scientists with valuable
information from which to infer the structure, dynamics and history of
Titan's atmosphere. Complex mixtures of hydrocarbons and
carbon-nitrogen
compounds were seen throughout the range of masses measured by the
Cassini ion and neutral mass spectrometer instrument.
"We are beginning to appreciate the role of the upper atmosphere in the
complex carbon cycle that occurs on Titan," said Dr. Hunter Waite,
principal investigator of the Cassini ion and neutral mass spectrometer
and professor at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. "Ultimately,
this information from the Saturn system will help us determine the
origins of organic matter within the entire solar system."
Hydrocarbons containing as many as seven carbon atoms were observed, as
well as nitrogen-containing hydrocarbons (nitriles). Titan's atmosphere
is composed primarily of nitrogen, followed by methane, the simplest
hydrocarbon. The nitrogen and methane are expected to form complex
hydrocarbons in a process induced by sunlight or energetic particles
from Saturn's magnetosphere. However, it is surprising to find the
plethora of complex hydrocarbon molecules in the upper reaches of the
atmosphere. Titan is very cold, and complex hydrocarbons would be
expected to condense and rain down to the surface.
"Biology on Earth is the primary source of organic production we are
familiar with, but the key question is: what is the ultimate source of
the organics in the solar system?" added Waite.
Interstellar clouds produce abundant quantities of organics, which are
best viewed as the dust and grains incorporated in comets. This
material
may have been the source of early organic compounds on Earth from which
life formed. Atmospheres of planets and their satellites in the outer
solar system, while containing methane and molecular nitrogen, are
largely devoid of oxygen. In this non-oxidizing environment under the
action of ultraviolet light from the Sun or energetic particle
radiation
(from Saturn's magnetosphere in this case), these atmospheres can also
produce large quantities of organics, and Titan is the prime example in
our solar system. This same process is a possible pathway for formation
of complex hydrocarbons on early Earth.
This was Cassini's sixth flyby of Titan, but its exploration has just
begun. Thirty-nine more flybys of this strange, remote world are
planned
during Cassini's nominal mission. The next Titan flyby is August 22.
The latest images from the Titan flyby are available at:
http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov and http://www.nasa.gov/cassini. The
Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European
Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. JPL, a division of the
California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Cassini
mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C.
Carolina Martinez (818) 354-9382
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
2005-062
Organic Materials Spotted High Above Titan's Surface
April 25, 2005
During its closest flyby of Saturn's moon Titan on April 16, the
Cassini
spacecraft came within 1,027 kilometers (638 miles) of the moon's
surface and found that the outer layer of the thick, hazy atmosphere is
brimming with complex hydrocarbons.
Scientists believe that Titan's atmosphere may be a laboratory for
studying the organic chemistry that preceded life and provided the
building blocks for life on Earth. The role of the upper atmosphere in
this organic "factory" of hydrocarbons is very intriguing to
scientists,
especially given the large number of different hydrocarbons detected by
Cassini during the flyby.
Cassini's ion and neutral mass spectrometer detects charged and neutral
particles in the atmosphere. It provides scientists with valuable
information from which to infer the structure, dynamics and history of
Titan's atmosphere. Complex mixtures of hydrocarbons and
carbon-nitrogen
compounds were seen throughout the range of masses measured by the
Cassini ion and neutral mass spectrometer instrument.
"We are beginning to appreciate the role of the upper atmosphere in the
complex carbon cycle that occurs on Titan," said Dr. Hunter Waite,
principal investigator of the Cassini ion and neutral mass spectrometer
and professor at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. "Ultimately,
this information from the Saturn system will help us determine the
origins of organic matter within the entire solar system."
Hydrocarbons containing as many as seven carbon atoms were observed, as
well as nitrogen-containing hydrocarbons (nitriles). Titan's atmosphere
is composed primarily of nitrogen, followed by methane, the simplest
hydrocarbon. The nitrogen and methane are expected to form complex
hydrocarbons in a process induced by sunlight or energetic particles
from Saturn's magnetosphere. However, it is surprising to find the
plethora of complex hydrocarbon molecules in the upper reaches of the
atmosphere. Titan is very cold, and complex hydrocarbons would be
expected to condense and rain down to the surface.
"Biology on Earth is the primary source of organic production we are
familiar with, but the key question is: what is the ultimate source of
the organics in the solar system?" added Waite.
Interstellar clouds produce abundant quantities of organics, which are
best viewed as the dust and grains incorporated in comets. This
material
may have been the source of early organic compounds on Earth from which
life formed. Atmospheres of planets and their satellites in the outer
solar system, while containing methane and molecular nitrogen, are
largely devoid of oxygen. In this non-oxidizing environment under the
action of ultraviolet light from the Sun or energetic particle
radiation
(from Saturn's magnetosphere in this case), these atmospheres can also
produce large quantities of organics, and Titan is the prime example in
our solar system. This same process is a possible pathway for formation
of complex hydrocarbons on early Earth.
This was Cassini's sixth flyby of Titan, but its exploration has just
begun. Thirty-nine more flybys of this strange, remote world are
planned
during Cassini's nominal mission. The next Titan flyby is August 22.
The latest images from the Titan flyby are available at:
http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov and http://www.nasa.gov/cassini. The
Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European
Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. JPL, a division of the
California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Cassini
mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C.