[X] My Assistant

[Guest_AlexBlackwell_*]

Hunter Waite et al. have a paper ("The Process of Tholin Formation in Titan's Upper Atmosphere") to be published in the May 11, 2007, issue of Science; there is also an accompanying Perspectives piece ("Titan's Organic Factory") by Sushil Atreya.

The embargo will be lifted in a hour or two, so if do not have embargo access, the direct links to the articles probably will not be accessible until then. However, you can click here for a brief description.

Also, Opher et al. have a paper ("The Orientation of the Local Interstellar Magnetic Field") with an accompanying Perspectives piece ("A Local Wiggle in the Turbulent Interstellar Magnetic Field") by Jokipii. Again, unless you have embargo access, click here for a brief description.

[Littlebit]

Using measurements from a combination of mass/charge and energy/charge spectrometers on the Cassini spacecraft, we have obtained evidence for tholin formation at high altitudes (1000 kilometers) in Titan's atmosphere. The observed chemical mix strongly implies a series of chemical reactions and physical processes that lead from simple molecules (CH4 and N2) to larger, more complex molecules (80 to 350 daltons) to negatively charged massive molecules (8000 daltons), which we identify as tholins. That the process involves massive negatively charged molecules and aerosols is completely unexpected.

If Tholins are formed primarily at these very high altitudes, the total tholin mole count over time is likely much lower than prior predictions, limiting the potential for tholin sludge buildup on the surface. This does not help explain what the surface is, but it does help explain why it does not appear to be black and oily.