[X] My Assistant

[jmknapp]

Here's an animation of the Jan. 15 flyby:

T10 flyby animation, 2.3MB AVI

A list of some of the activities:

CIRS_020TI_FIRNADIRCOMPINT_01

Obtain information on trace constituents in Titan's stratosphere. Integrate on limb at two positions POINTING: Obtain information on CO, HCN, CH4. Integrate on disk at airmass 1.5-2.0. POINTING: -y to Titan, x away from sun.


ISS_020TI_MONITORNA001_PRIME
NAC Monitoring of Surface and Atmosphere
monitoring for surface/atmosphere changes; attempt to see surface color variations; monitor limb hazes, 1-3 km/px

MAG_020TI_MAGTITAN001_PRIME
T10 Flyby
T 10 is an interesting upstream encounter with a minimum distance of 2071 km which reaches into the middle ionosphere. Together with T 8 and T 6 it allows to reconstruct the upstream equatorial ionospheric pile-up region. Since it repeats T 8 and T 6 to some extent the priority is smaller than T 6 and T 8, but still in the range of grade one priority.

NOTE: - continuous data rate of 1976bps (32vps).


MIMI_020TI_T10INBND001_ISS
MAPS 020TI(T10) Campaign
Part of 020TI(T10) MAPS Campaign. Investigate micro-scale and near aspects of the Titan interaction by observing during about one hour period around an encounter. With -Y pointed toward Titan, when within 30 minutes of the targeted flyby, optimize secondary axis for corotation flow as close to the S/C -X, +/- Z plane as works with the other constraints on pointing. Also, measure Titan exosphere/magnetosphere interaction by imaging in ENA with INCA (when sun is not in INCA FOV).

RPWS_020TI_TIINTRMED001_PRIME
Titan Interaction - Intermediate
Study the interaction of the magnetosphere with Titan at intermediate
distances for evidence of ion pickup, radio emissions, density profiles,
and the general wave environment. Prefer Langmuir probe within 90
degrees of plasma ram.

UVIS_020SU_USUNOCC001_PRIME
USUN_T10
This is a Titan solar occulation with both ingress and egress.
1) Turn from waypoint to Titan. EUV solar occultation port centered on sun at start time: 2006-015T11:15:00. +X to Titan Center
2) Take data from start time: 2006-015T11:15:00 until 1st activity stop: 2006-015T11:48:00. 3) Take data from 2nd activity start: 2006-015T11:53:00 until activity end time: 2006-015T12:27:00.
3) Turn to waypoint and reset pointing.

MP_020TI_FLYBYT010_NA
2006JAN15 11:41 UTC - 2006JAN15 11:41 UTC
Targeted inbound 2043 km flyby, v = 5.8 km/s, phase = 120 deg

MP_020EA_OCCTITAN020_NA
2006JAN15 11:49 UTC - 2006JAN15 12:03 UTC
Earth occulted by TITAN duration = 14 min; egress = 2006-015T12:04

MP_020SU_OCCTITAN020_NA
2006JAN15 11:49 UTC - 2006JAN15 12:03 UTC
Sun occulted by TITAN duration = 13 min; egress = 2006-015T12:03

CIRS_020TI_FIRLIMB_INTEG_01
Vertical sounding stratospheric compounds on Titan, including H2O. Integrations at 2 locations on the limb displaced vertically. POINTING: -y to Titan, z within 45 degrees of normal to limb.

ISS_020TI_AURORAE001_VIMS
WAC Nightside Imaging
search for and monitor lightning/aurora

Also stealing some of the limelight on Jan. 15, Stardust will return samples from Comet Wild to Earth.

Jan. 15 in space exploration history:

2008: First Messenger flyby of Mercury
2004: MER Spirit drives onto the surface of Mars
2001: Stardust spacecraft flys by earth
1962: Apollo Spacecraft Project Office established

all hail Google...

[djellison]

I THINK it might be real - Jason will probably smack me down for this....but is it Cloud?

On second thoughts - it does seem to simply appear and dissapear with unusual filters - maybe it IS an imaging artifact - it doesnt quite move with Titan does it? JASON!!! Help!!

A quick RGB, I love these high angle images

Doug

Attached thumbnail(s)

 

[mchan]

I THINK it might be real - Jason will probably smack me down for this....but is it Cloud?

Doug

It appears to have some symmetry to my untrained eyes. A symmetrical cloud formation?

[exoplanet]

It appears to have some symmetry to my untrained eyes.  A symmetrical cloud formation?

How odd . . . it appears to be perfectly round too. Also the two dots of light above are nearly the same distance apart as though they went through the doghnut shaped cloud. This has to be an artifact but if not . . .

Seems quite odd too that we see a feature like this at Titan's north polar region and then we find all sorts of activity at the south polar region of Enceladus.

[JRehling]

How odd . . . it appears to be perfectly round too.  Also the two dots of light above are nearly the same distance apart as though they went through the doghnut shaped cloud.  This has to be an artifact but if not . . .

Seems quite odd too that we see a feature like this at Titan's north polar region and then we find all sorts of activity at the south polar region of Enceladus.

Is that the north polar region? I can't tell what orientation we're looking at -- there aren't any clues I know of, besides possibly this ring-cloud.

If it is, note that Voyager imaged a dark ring over Titan's north pole -- in visible light and above the haze; of course, Cassini has imaged bright clouds around the south pole -- in IR and below the haze.

Overall, we have to suspect that the convection patterns at Titan are poleward at some altitude, and since the polar longitudes are smaller than the equator, this causes a "traffic jam" where air is forced up (or possibly down). That would naturally cause rings, but I'm hand-waving here -- the details are obscure.

My synthesis of this has been that the summer pole has low-altitude methane clouds that somehow (try: lightning) changes the chemistry in the vicinity even at higher altitudes. Perhaps some organics created by lightning are light enough (or dark enough, and thus warmed and rising) to climb over the haze. This ring (if not an artifact!) may be the same "smoke ring" seen by Voyager as a dark ring over the haze.

As for what happens at the winter pole, that's potentially/probably a separate question.

Maybe this ring is over the summer pole?