AVIATR - Titan Airplane Mission Concept, Proposed unmanned aerial exploration of Titan |
AVIATR - Titan Airplane Mission Concept, Proposed unmanned aerial exploration of Titan |
Apr 16 2010, 12:20 AM
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Senior Member Group: Moderator Posts: 2785 Joined: 10-November 06 From: Pasadena, CA Member No.: 1345 |
The AVIATR mission concept is an unmanned aerial vehicle that would fly over Titan’s surface. It’s nominal one year mission would enable detailed high-resolution images of Titan’s diverse landscapes for better comparison to Earth’s geological processes. Selected regions could be imaged at resolutions near 30 cm/pixel, equivalent to current HiRise imaging of Mars. In addition, atmospheric sampling would allow a profile of Titan’s thick lower atmosphere and how it relates to Earth’s atmospheric processes and weather systems.
Further details of the AVIATR mission concept were presented at the Lunar and Planetary Sciences Conference 2010 and at Titan Through Time 2010. See: Barnes et al. LPSC 41 (2010) Abstract 2551. “AVIATR: Aerial Vehicle for In-situ and Airborne Titan Reconnaissance.” Freely available here: http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2010/pdf/2551.pdf And also: http://www.info.uidaho.edu/documents/2010%...18467&doc=1 -------------------- Some higher resolution images available at my photostream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31678681@N07/
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Jun 28 2010, 02:59 PM
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Member Group: Members Posts: 104 Joined: 1-June 08 Member No.: 4172 |
It's certainly a shame the mass spectrometer can't be included (Mike's got me hooked on Titan chemistry) but this mission, if it can stand up to its objective of "flagship-class science with a Discovery-class cost", will revolutionize our understanding of one of the most interesting destinations in the solar system. I can't wait.
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Jun 29 2010, 10:15 PM
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Member Group: Members Posts: 131 Joined: 30-August 06 From: Moscow, Idaho Member No.: 1086 |
It's certainly a shame the mass spectrometer can't be included (Mike's got me hooked on Titan chemistry) I guess that I don't consider it a shame not to have a mass spec! While the science from a mass spectrometer would be awesome, there's no need to have one on an airplane. In order to do better than Huygens you would need a high-quality, ultra-high-mass-resolution spectrometer. This would be heavy. Remember that we can only fly 10-14kg of instruments. Because the trace gas abundances should be the same all over Titan, there would seem to be no need for the mobility of an airplane. If trace gas measurements are your mission, then you should send an atmospheric probe or a lander, not an airplane (or a balloon for that matter). - Jason |
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