Titan PDS Image Products Options

[Bjorn Jonsson]

Following recent discussion in this thread on Titan's polar vortex and visible atmospheric features (including what looks like faint 'cloud belts') I decided to take a look at the PDS data. The main reason is that it's possible get get much better results for low contrast targets like Titan by using the PDS data than the raw JPGs. I found some interesting images obtained on April 19, 2011; rev 147. This rev was previously discussed here when the Titan flyby was happening.

Here is a sharpened BL1 WAC image obtained at a range of 137,000 km. The subspacecraft latitude is 0.2 degrees:



North is up. Different parts of the image have been processed with different unsharp masks. Low contrast east-west 'cloud belts' are apparent and these are definitely real features. Interestingly, they are not perfectly east-west oriented but instead appear a bit 'curved'. This is not a perspective effect and also Cassini was only 0.2 degrees north of Titan's equator.

It might be possible to squeeze even more details out of comparable VIO images. The problem is that they appear awfully mottled and my 'standard' calibration/flatfielding didn't remove this. I probably need to make extra flats to get rid of this effect.

[remcook]

It is known that the rotation axis of the stratosphere is tilted with respect to the rotation axis of the surface by about 4 degrees, which might explain some of the curvature in the bands you see.
Further reading:
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2008Icar..197..549A
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2009Icar..203..242R
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2010P%26SS...58..792T
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2010P%26SS...58..814T

[TheAnt]

Oh drat! That image just had be reclassify Titan as a gas giant.

Serious: Absolutely first class work there, and yes I see that curvature also, insightful remark there on those 4 degrees remcook it almost look like a tad more.
Could the seasons offset the weather pattern further?