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Titan Review article
rlorenz
post Dec 14 2007, 05:02 PM
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This just out. Not earth-shattering, but colorful - maybe handy as an up-to-date
Titan intro

http://www.jhuapl.edu/techdigest/td2702/lorenz.pdf
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nprev
post Dec 28 2007, 03:31 PM
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Well, I was less than clear (again) in what I meant (sorry!) rolleyes.gif

Europa certainly needs & deserves attention, but frankly I'm not completely convinced that achieving major scientific objectives--confirmation of an ocean, ice thickness sounding, global high-res photographic coverage, plume search/monitoring--can't be accomplished via one or more Discovery missions in the relatively near term. We pretty much know what to look for at Europa and indeed throughout the entire Galliean satellite system. What we don't know is whether we can get to that putative ocean via any practical technology, but again that seems like something that could be determined on less than a Flagship-class level of effort. I think that the answer to that question is key for planning all future Europa exploration.

On the other hand, we've already landed on Titan; we know that we can conduct in situ exploration using reasonable evolutes of current technology, which becomes a trade-off between transit time/launch costs and science return. (Side note: this is why I still wish that there was an ongoing, organized effort by JPL or somebody to identify particularly favorable outer-planet launch opportunities). Titan is quite possibly at least as geochemically complex as Earth (with an outside chance of being more so). Therefore, to me, it seems as if there is a lot more science to be done at Titan than anywhere else in the Solar System


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JRehling
post Dec 28 2007, 08:40 PM
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I think the key question, which may come down more to faith than evidence, is: How much more favorable is the very best spot on Europa for landed exploration than the best spot we now know of? Is it possible that if we sent a lander to the best spot we know of now that it would land in an area that last received salty/silty flooding ten million years ago, but if we looked harder we would find a spot that last received salty/silty flooding ten years ago? Or 100? Or... whatever?

This is the main value proposition for a Europa orbiter. If Europa is basically homogeneous on a regional scale (obviously, on a local scale, it is not), then we will gain comparatively little from orbital reconnaissance in detail. But if there is one special place (or 10 or 20 of them) where we get better access to the ocean below (either in terms of a very thin spot in the ice for direct access, or just a much fresher patch of surface ice), then there is tremendous value in mapping the hell out of Europa at great resolution before sending something up there [down there] for a taste.

There's no doubt that Europa is going to be vastly more isotropic than Titan. Chromatically, Europa is almost a two-color world, with every spot on the surface distinguished by how much dark stuff is in the ice, and a simple metric that probably correlates with that would be the age of every spot. Think of the Earth -- we have crust that is millions of years old, and we have crust that is 26 years old (Mt. St. Helens) or as fresh as yesterday. But those new areas are very small, and wouldn't turn up after just a few flybys.

Titan will be wonderfully more complex than Europa, and is an irresistible target for future flagship missions, and if there were only going to be one more outer solar system mission ever, I would consider Titan the best choice. But as part of a sequence, I think it makes more sense to visit Europa next, then Titan, and then possibly Europa for the mission after that. Or, to direct the competition elsewhere, I might say that when we have gone further down the road of exhausting possible flagship missions to Mars, that Europa might merit some or most of the "astrobiology" coffer that Mars is now monopolizing.
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Posts in this topic
- rlorenz   Titan Review article   Dec 14 2007, 05:02 PM
- - ugordan   QUOTE "Figure 1. A false-color composite of C...   Dec 14 2007, 05:13 PM
- - volcanopele   Well, I guess the secret is out. The ISS camera i...   Dec 14 2007, 05:42 PM
- - djellison   I assume the D is for Danger? Doug   Dec 14 2007, 06:02 PM
- - remcook   Yeah that Space Station also makes its appearance ...   Dec 14 2007, 06:07 PM
- - rlorenz   Hmm. So nice of you all to speak in such glowing t...   Dec 16 2007, 03:57 PM
|- - ngunn   Great article, thanks for sharing it here. In advo...   Dec 17 2007, 10:06 AM
|- - rlorenz   QUOTE (ngunn @ Dec 17 2007, 05:06 AM) Gre...   Dec 17 2007, 01:43 PM
|- - ngunn   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 17 2007, 01:43 PM) ...   Dec 17 2007, 03:19 PM
|- - dburt   QUOTE (ngunn @ Dec 17 2007, 08:19 AM) How...   Dec 17 2007, 08:04 PM
- - djellison   Hand on heart - I've been keeping it ready for...   Dec 16 2007, 04:29 PM
- - Mongo   You know that we're just teasing. I personall...   Dec 16 2007, 04:30 PM
- - Floyd   Ralph, I really enjoyed the article--keep up the e...   Dec 16 2007, 05:21 PM
- - nprev   Great article, Ralph; certainly a call to arms for...   Dec 16 2007, 06:45 PM
- - Rob Pinnegar   Nice article. I picked up a few things from it tha...   Dec 16 2007, 06:54 PM
- - Webscientist   I bought in 2004 "Lifting Titan's Veil...   Dec 16 2007, 08:12 PM
|- - rlorenz   QUOTE (Webscientist @ Dec 16 2007, 03:12 ...   Dec 17 2007, 01:37 PM
|- - vjkane   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 17 2007, 01:37 PM) P...   Dec 17 2007, 04:53 PM
||- - Mongo   QUOTE (vjkane @ Dec 17 2007, 04:53 PM) In...   Dec 17 2007, 06:46 PM
|||- - rlorenz   (we identified the same 5 terrain types as possibl...   Dec 18 2007, 12:22 AM
|||- - Mongo   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 18 2007, 12:22 AM) (...   Dec 18 2007, 12:58 AM
|||- - rlorenz   QUOTE (Mongo @ Dec 17 2007, 07:58 PM) ......   Dec 18 2007, 01:59 PM
||||- - dvandorn   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 18 2007, 07:59 AM) Y...   Dec 18 2007, 06:31 PM
|||||- - rlorenz   QUOTE (dvandorn @ Dec 18 2007, 01:31 PM) ...   Dec 18 2007, 08:16 PM
|||||- - dvandorn   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 18 2007, 02:16 PM) A...   Dec 18 2007, 08:42 PM
||||- - NMRguy   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 18 2007, 02:59 PM) O...   Dec 19 2007, 01:14 PM
||||- - rlorenz   QUOTE (NMRguy @ Dec 19 2007, 08:14 AM) So...   Dec 19 2007, 02:35 PM
||||- - ngunn   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 19 2007, 02:35 PM) A...   Dec 19 2007, 02:57 PM
||||- - JRehling   A purely equatorial orbit would preclude RADAR obe...   Dec 19 2007, 10:24 PM
|||- - vjkane   QUOTE (Mongo @ Dec 18 2007, 12:58 AM) The...   Dec 18 2007, 05:05 PM
|||- - Mongo   QUOTE (vjkane @ Dec 18 2007, 05:05 PM) So...   Dec 18 2007, 05:55 PM
||||- - vjkane   QUOTE (Mongo @ Dec 18 2007, 05:55 PM) So ...   Dec 18 2007, 07:42 PM
||||- - rlorenz   QUOTE (Mongo @ Dec 18 2007, 12:55 PM) So ...   Dec 18 2007, 08:13 PM
||||- - Mongo   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 18 2007, 08:13 PM) Y...   Dec 18 2007, 08:59 PM
||||- - ngunn   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 18 2007, 08:13 PM) Y...   Dec 18 2007, 10:24 PM
||||- - vjkane   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 18 2007, 08:13 PM) Y...   Dec 18 2007, 11:58 PM
|||- - tty   QUOTE (vjkane @ Dec 18 2007, 06:05 PM) Le...   Dec 18 2007, 10:09 PM
||- - rlorenz   QUOTE (vjkane @ Dec 17 2007, 11:53 AM) In...   Dec 18 2007, 12:33 AM
|- - Juramike   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 17 2007, 08:37 AM) W...   Dec 17 2007, 08:34 PM
|- - rlorenz   QUOTE (Juramike @ Dec 17 2007, 03:34 PM) ...   Dec 18 2007, 12:24 AM
|- - Juramike   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 17 2007, 07:24 PM) ....   Dec 18 2007, 04:26 AM
- - JRehling   Great synopsis. The points regarding the diversity...   Dec 16 2007, 11:08 PM
- - Stu   Great intro to the wonders and mysteries of Titan,...   Dec 16 2007, 11:55 PM
- - scalbers   Or could we suggest elements of the Vega Venus mis...   Dec 17 2007, 07:30 PM
|- - vjkane   QUOTE (scalbers @ Dec 17 2007, 07:30 PM) ...   Dec 17 2007, 07:46 PM
- - nprev   ...Mike, you just freakin' amaze me sometimes....   Dec 17 2007, 08:58 PM
- - djellison   And bonus points if it involves anything on Youtub...   Dec 18 2007, 12:29 AM
- - ngunn   Fascinating, Mike. But you've got me wondering...   Dec 18 2007, 11:40 AM
- - NMRguy   QUOTE (rlorenz @ Dec 19 2007, 03:35 PM) W...   Dec 19 2007, 03:14 PM
- - ngunn   Spot on, as usual. But why is it that I find Titan...   Dec 19 2007, 10:38 PM
|- - vjkane   QUOTE (ngunn @ Dec 19 2007, 10:38 PM) Spo...   Dec 20 2007, 01:17 AM
|- - ugordan   QUOTE (vjkane @ Dec 20 2007, 02:17 AM) My...   Dec 20 2007, 08:34 AM
- - djellison   It's simple. The Enceladus plumes are indeed, ...   Dec 20 2007, 08:52 AM
- - belleraphon1   Nature is rarely simple. Too soon to declare Ence...   Dec 20 2007, 12:50 PM
- - Matt   Worldlets.....well put, I like it; I only wish I...   Dec 27 2007, 10:12 PM
|- - nprev   QUOTE (Matt @ Dec 27 2007, 02:12 PM) I kn...   Dec 27 2007, 10:41 PM
|- - belleraphon1   QUOTE (nprev @ Dec 27 2007, 05:41 PM) Tit...   Dec 28 2007, 02:40 PM
|- - vjkane   QUOTE (belleraphon1 @ Dec 28 2007, 02:40 ...   Dec 28 2007, 06:43 PM
|- - lyford   QUOTE (vjkane @ Dec 28 2007, 10:43 AM) I ...   Dec 28 2007, 08:39 PM
- - nprev   Well, I was less than clear (again) in what I mean...   Dec 28 2007, 03:31 PM
|- - ugordan   QUOTE (nprev @ Dec 28 2007, 04:31 PM) ......   Dec 28 2007, 04:12 PM
||- - belleraphon1   QUOTE (ugordan @ Dec 28 2007, 11:12 AM) W...   Dec 28 2007, 09:00 PM
|- - JRehling   I think the key question, which may come down more...   Dec 28 2007, 08:40 PM
|- - vjkane   John, as usual, nails the subject, at least as I s...   Dec 28 2007, 09:34 PM
- - nprev   The strategy I envision is sort of a "one-not...   Dec 28 2007, 05:28 PM
- - vjkane   QUOTE (nprev @ Dec 28 2007, 05:28 PM) The...   Dec 28 2007, 06:37 PM
- - nprev   QUOTE (vjkane @ Dec 28 2007, 10:37 AM) I ...   Dec 28 2007, 08:33 PM


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