Dust Storms on Titan |
Dust Storms on Titan |
Sep 25 2018, 03:08 PM
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#1
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Member Group: Members Posts: 238 Joined: 15-January 13 Member No.: 6842 |
Dust storms on Titan spotted for the first time: NASA.
QUOTE Data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft has revealed what appear to be giant dust storms in equatorial regions of Saturn's moon Titan. The discovery, described in a paper published on Sept. 24 in Nature Geoscience, makes Titan the third Solar System body, in addition to Earth and Mars, where dust storms have been observed. It seems like the dust and "sand" from the hydrocarbon dunes at the equator can be kicked up by strong winds, which would then transport it over great distances. Question regarding the above illustration: would Saturn be at all visible from Titan's surface? I was under the impression that Titan's atmosphere is completely opaque. -------------------- Curiosity rover panoramas: http://www.facebook.com/CuriosityRoverPanoramas
My Photosynth panoramas: http://photosynth.net/userprofilepage.aspx...;content=Synths |
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Sep 25 2018, 05:06 PM
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#2
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Solar System Cartographer Group: Members Posts: 10256 Joined: 5-April 05 From: Canada Member No.: 227 |
I don't know if the atmosphere is completely opaque in visible wavelengths, but if a bit of light can get through, the contrast of Saturn against black space would show up a lot better than small variations in shading looking downwards at Titan from above. In some IR wavelenths we can see the surface from above, so certainly at those wavelengths Saturn could be seen.
Phil -------------------- ... because the Solar System ain't gonna map itself.
Also to be found posting similar content on https://mastodon.social/@PhilStooke Maps for download (free PDF: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...Cartography.pdf NOTE: everything created by me which I post on UMSF is considered to be in the public domain (NOT CC, public domain) |
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Sep 25 2018, 08:15 PM
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#3
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3516 Joined: 4-November 05 From: North Wales Member No.: 542 |
I seem to recall from earlier discussions that a sharp reddish image of the sun is believed to be faintly visible from the surface when it is at high elevation, but not near the horizon. Presumably the same would be true of Saturn at night. I would be very surprised if Saturn were visible at all by day however, even overhead.
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Sep 26 2018, 02:47 AM
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#4
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Member Group: Members Posts: 718 Joined: 22-April 05 Member No.: 351 |
I wonder how this will affect the Dragonfly evaluation.
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Oct 17 2019, 05:24 PM
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#5
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Member Group: Members Posts: 402 Joined: 5-January 07 From: Manchester England Member No.: 1563 |
A paper in Science raises two intriguing ideas. The first is scientific: The hydrocarbon dunes may be 'grown' from hydrocarbon ices undergoing a yet-to-be-fully-pinned-down reaction powered by cosmic rays. That could also explain their presence on airless solar system bodies. Paper here
The second is... artistic: According to Michael Malaska, who studies planetary ices at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. "Their work further supports that some of Titan's sand may glow pretty colors under UV light," That was reported in a Space.com article, here: Bring a powerful blacklight to a dust storm on Titan and your might get some mind-blowing visuals. -------------------- |
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Oct 22 2019, 09:37 PM
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#6
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Member Group: Members Posts: 613 Joined: 23-February 07 From: Occasionally in Columbia, MD Member No.: 1764 |
The second is... artistic: According to Michael Malaska, who studies planetary ices at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. "Their work further supports that some of Titan's sand may glow pretty colors under UV light," That was reported in a Space.com article, here: Bring a powerful blacklight to a dust storm on Titan and your might get some mind-blowing visuals. Yes, I pointed out at the Planetary Dunes workshop a couple of years ago that the sands on Titan likely contain PAHs which may fluoresce (see attached abstract) Dragonfly carries UV illuminators and will take pictures of the sand at night to look for this.
Attached File(s)
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Oct 23 2019, 08:49 AM
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#7
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3516 Joined: 4-November 05 From: North Wales Member No.: 542 |
Fascinating stuff, thanks for posting the link. It certainly sets the imagination going. I wonder if material suspended in Titan's surface liquids might fluoresce also, perhaps in response to fluvial, tidal or wave motion?
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Oct 23 2019, 11:12 PM
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#8
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2530 Joined: 20-April 05 Member No.: 321 |
Fascinating stuff, thanks for posting the link. It certainly sets the imagination going. I wonder if material suspended in Titan's surface liquids might fluoresce also, perhaps in response to fluvial, tidal or wave motion? Fluorescence is due to higher-energy/shorter-wavelength photons being downshifted to >1 photons at lower energy being absorbed. There is also triboluminescence caused by high physical stress on solids, which you can see by biting into mint Lifesavers in a dark room (they flash, softly). I don't think tides or waves would generate sufficient force to do that, but I also wouldn't count on Titan failing to surprise us. |
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