The First Global Map of Titan

Few researchers have been able to find a way of the exploration of Titan which is Saturn’s largest moon. This has been achieved by producing the first global map of the world’s icy plains, twisted canyons, and crinkled shorelines. The path finding chart has been published in the Nature Astronomy which is to be considered as the foundation of more detailed maps which are yet to come in future, maps that will help scientists decipher the moon’s past and plan for its future exploration. It is highly important to know before the astronauts plan to go and hike through Titan’s gentle hills or slide down its colossal dunes. This will help them to get an idea. David Williams is a planetary scientist at Arizona State University who has helped greatly in order to produce the plot and said “Geologic Mapping is basically another tool we use when we analyses planetary surfaces to try and understand their histories.” In 2004, the Cassini spacecraft had reached already in the Saturn system and helped the researchers to have the first glimpse through Titan’s thick yellow clouds proving that the moon’s atmosphere is thicker than the Earth’s but almost all nitrogen and methane. For the next 13 years, the probe’s penetrating radar kept on moving over the moon again and again same as it’s performance more than 100 flybys, showing various things like lakes, rivers, and other unmistakable signs of surface liquid—a first for any world other than Earth. However, Williams and his colleagues had begun their radar imagery mission in which Cassini sent radio waves through the clouds so that it should bounce off Titan’s surface in order to generate a map. Little less than half of Titan’s surface in swooping, crossing tracts is covered by this method but the good part is that it can give a fine resolution to the team to identify the moon’s different types of terrains, such as plains or dunes etc. Post this they overlaid the radar data with data absorbed by the other cameras imaging visible and infrared light that are fuzzier ensuring that they cover the whole world’s image to learn how each landform appeared to each of Cassini’s various eyes. Finally, they decided to use this global data using other instruments to infer the different types of land lay between the swaths of radar. Williams said “This particular map was focused on showing the variety of surface materials on a global scale.” The good part is that this map reveals the whole globe to be shaped by liquid and wind whereby it is know that no water flows on Titan’s surface, at nearly 300 degrees F below zero. Aside to this, even liquid methane and ethane cover a major part of Titan’s rivers and lakes, before evaporating and raining down again in an alien analogy of Earth’s water cycle. It is also said that a robotic scout may be put to use these more wisely by any human explorers. NASA is in progress of developing a probe called Dragonfly which will help to navigate Titan by air, land on the surface, and then take off again. As per the schedule, the mission should be departed from Earth in 2026 with its expected arrival at the moon in 2034, where it will look for signs of alien habitability. Williams said “This map will help inform that team of the nature of the geologic units around wherever it is that they’re planning on putting their drone to explore.”

By: Anuja Arora
Content: https://www.popsci.com/story/space/complete-map-titan-saturn-moon/