Titanium is a satellite of which planet. Discovery of Titan and naming

The second largest in the solar system after Ganymede (Jupiter). In its structure, this body is very similar to the Earth. Its atmosphere is also similar to ours, and in 2008 a large underground ocean was discovered on Titan. For this reason, many scientists suggest that this particular satellite of Saturn will become the abode of mankind in the future.

Titan is a moon that has a mass equal to about 95 percent of the mass of all Saturns. The force of gravity is about a seventh of that on Earth. It is the only satellite in our system that has a dense atmosphere. The study of the surface of Titan is difficult due to the thick cloud layer. The temperature is minus 170-180 degrees, and the pressure at the surface is 1.5 times higher than that of the Earth.

There are lakes, rivers and seas on Titan made of ethane and methane, as well as high mountains that are mostly ice. According to the assumptions of some scientists, around the stone core, which reaches a diameter of 3400 kilometers, there are several layers of ice with different types of crystallization, and also, possibly, one layer of liquid.

In the course of research on Titan, a huge hydrocarbon pool was discovered - the Kraken Sea. Its area is 400,050 square kilometers. According to computer calculations and images taken from the spacecraft, the composition of the liquid in all lakes is approximately the following: ethane (about 79%), propane (7-8%), methane (5-10%), hydrogen cyanide (2-3%) , acetylene, butane, butene (about 1%). According to other theories, the main substances are methane and ethane.

Titan is a moon whose atmosphere is about 400 kilometers thick. It contains layers of hydrocarbon smog. For this reason, the surface of this celestial body cannot be observed with a telescope.

The planet Titan receives very little solar energy to ensure the dynamics of processes in the atmosphere. Scientists have suggested that the energy to move atmospheric masses provides a strong tidal effect of the planet Saturn.

Rotation and orbit

The radius of Titan's orbit is 1,221,870 kilometers. Outside of it, there are such satellites of Saturn as Hyperion and Iapetus, and inside - Mimas, Tethys, Dione, Enceladus. Titan's orbit passes out

The Titan satellite makes a complete revolution around its planet in fifteen days, twenty-two hours and forty-one minutes. The orbital speed is 5.57 kilometers per second.

Like many others, the Titan satellite rotates synchronously with respect to Saturn. This means that the time of its rotation around the planet and around its axis coincide, as a result of which Titan always turns one side to Saturn, so there is a point on the surface of the satellite at which Saturn always appears to be hanging at the zenith.

The tilt of the axis of rotation of Saturn provides on the planet itself and its satellites. For example, the last summer on Titan ended in 2009. At the same time, the duration of each season is approximately seven and a half years, since the planet Saturn makes a complete revolution around the Sun star in thirty years.

Satellite name: Titanium;

Diameter: 5152 km;

Pov area: 83,000,000 km²;

Volume: 715.66×10 8 km³;

Weight: 1.35×1023 kg;

Density be: 1880 kg/m³;

Rotation period: 15.95 days;

Period of circulation: 15.95 days;

Distance from Saturn: 1,161,600 km;

Orbital speed: 5.57 km/s;

equator length: 16,177 km;

Orbital inclination: 0.35°;

Accel. free fall: 1.35 m/s²;

Titanium- the largest satellite of Saturn, as well as the second largest satellite in the solar system. For a long time it was believed that Titan is the largest moon in the solar system. Since modern research, scientists have paid attention to the size of Jupiter's moon Ganymede, which has a radius (2634 km) 58 km larger than that of Titan (2576 km). Saturn's satellite is not only larger than the rest of the moons, but even some of the planets. For example, the radius of the first planet from the Sun Mercury is 2440 km, which is 136 km less than the radius of Titan, and the last planet in the solar system is Pluto, 10 less in volume than the satellite. Titan size among the planets it is close to Mars (radius 3390 km), and their volumes are in the ratio 1:2.28 (in favor of Mars). In addition, Titan is the densest body among all Saturn's moons. And the mass of the largest moon is greater than the other satellites of Saturn combined. Titan accounts for more than 95% of the mass of all Saturn's moons. This is a bit like the ratio of the mass of the Sun to all other bodies in the solar system. Where the mass of the star accounts for more than 99% of the mass of the entire solar system. Density and Mass Titanium 1880 kg / m³ and 1.35 × 10 23 kg is similar to Jupiter's satellites - Ganymede (1936 kg / m³, 1.48 × 10 23 kg) and Callisto (1834 kg / m³, 1.08 × 10 23 kg).
Titan is the twenty-second moon of Saturn. Its orbit is farther than Dione, Tethys, and Enceladus, but nearly three times closer than Iapetus's. Titan is located outside the rings of Saturn at a distance of 1,221,900 km from the center of the planet and no closer than 1,161,600 km from the outer layers of Saturn's atmosphere. The satellite makes a complete revolution in almost 16 Earth days, or rather in 15 days 22 hours and 41 minutes with an average speed of 5.57 km / s. This is 5.5 times faster than the rotation of the Moon around the Earth. Like the Moon and many other planetary satellites in the solar system, Titan has a synchronous rotation relative to the planet, resulting from the action of tidal forces. This means that the periods of rotation around its axis and revolution around Saturn coincide, and the satellite is always turned to the planet by the same side. On Titan, as on Earth, there is a change of seasons, since the axis of rotation of Saturn is tilted relative to its equator by 26.73 °. Nevertheless, the planet is so distant from the Sun (1.43 billion km) that such climatic seasons last 7.5 years each. That is, Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn on Saturn and its satellites, including Titan, alternate every 30 years - that is how much time is needed Saturian system to completely wrap around the sun.

Titan, like all other large satellites of the solar system, was discovered in the Middle Ages. Although the optics and telescopes of that time were much inferior to modern ones, nevertheless, on March 25, 1655, the astronomer Christian Huygens managed to notice a bright body next to Saturn, which, as he established, every 16 days appears in the same place on the disk of Saturn and therefore wraps around the planet. After four such revolutions, in June 1655, when the rings of Saturn had a low inclination relative to the Earth and did not interfere with observation, Huygens was finally convinced that he had discovered Saturn's satellite. This was the second discovery of a satellite since the invention of the telescope, 45 years after the discovery. Galileo the four largest moons of Jupiter. For nearly two centuries, the satellite had no specific name. The real name of Titan was proposed by John Herschel, an English astronomer and physicist in 1847, in honor of Kronos' brother, Titan.

The size of Titan (bottom left) compared to the Moon (top left) and Earth (right).

Titan is 15 times smaller than Earth and 3.3 times larger than the Moon

Atmosphere and climate

Titan is the only satellite in the solar system that has a fairly dense and thick atmosphere. It ends at an altitude of about 400 km from the satellite surface, which is 4.7 times higher than the Earth's atmosphere (the conditional boundary between the Earth's air shell and space is taken Karman line at an altitude of 85 km from the Earth's surface). The atmosphere of Titan has an average mass of 4.8 × 10 20 kg, which is almost 100 times heavier than Earth's air (5.2 × 10 18 kg). However, due to weak gravity, the free fall acceleration on the satellite is only 1.35 m / s² - 7.3 times weaker than Earth's gravity, and therefore, as the pressure decreases at the surface of Titan, it rises only to 146.7 kPa (only 1.5 times the Earth's atmosphere). Titan's atmosphere is very similar to Earth's. Its lower layers are also subdivided into troposphere and stratosphere. In the troposphere, the temperature drops with height, from -179 ° C at the surface to -203 ° C at an altitude of 35 km (on Earth, the troposphere ends at an altitude of 10-12 km). An extensive tropopause extends up to an altitude of 50 km, where the temperature remains almost constant. And then the temperature begins to rise, bypassing the stratosphere and mesosphere - about 150 km from the surface. AT ionosphere at an altitude of 400-500 km, the temperature rises to a maximum mark - approximately -120-130 ° C.

The air shell of Titan consists almost entirely of 98.4% nitrogen, the remaining 1.6% is methane and argon, which prevail mainly in the upper atmosphere. In this, too, the satellite is similar to our planet, since Titan and the Earth are the only bodies in the solar system, the atmospheres of which are mostly nitrogen (on the surface of the Earth, the concentration of nitrogen is 78.1%). Titanium does not have a significant magnetic field, so the upper layers of the air shell are highly susceptible to the solar wind and cosmic radiation. AT upper atmosphere, under the influence of ultraviolet solar radiation, methane and nitrogen form complex hydrocarbon compounds. Some of them contain at least 7 carbon atoms. If it goes down to surface of titan and look up, the sky will be orange, because the dense layers of the atmosphere are rather reluctant to let out the sun's rays. Organic compounds, including nitrogen atoms in the upper layers of the atmosphere, can also form such a color of the air.

Comparison of the Earth's atmosphere and the atmosphere of Titan. The air of both bodies is mostly

consists of nitrogen: Titanium - 94.8%, Earth - 78.1%. Moreover, in the middle layers

troposphere of Titan, at an altitude of 8-10 km contains about 40% of methane, which

under pressure, it condenses into methane clouds. Then to the surface

rains from liquid methane, as on Earth - water

An image of Titan from the Cassini spacecraft. Atmosphere satellite so

dense and opaque that it is impossible to see the surface from space

An interesting topic for discussion of Titan is undoubtedly satellite climate. The temperature at the surface of Titan averages -180 °C. Due to the dense and opaque atmosphere, the temperature difference between the poles and the equator is only 3 degrees. These low temperatures and high pressures counteract the melting of water ice, leaving the atmosphere virtually water-free. At the surface, the air almost entirely consists of nitrogen, and as it rises, the nitrogen concentration decreases, while the content of ethane C 2 H 6 and methane CH 4 increases. At an altitude of 8-16 km, the relative humidity of gases rises to 100% and condenses into discharged methane and ethane clouds. The pressure on Titan is sufficient to maintain these two elements not in a gaseous state, as on Earth, but in a liquid state. From time to time, when the clouds accumulate sufficient moisture, on the surface of Titan, like Earth sediment, fall ethano-methane rains and form entire rivers, seas, and even oceans from liquid "gas". In March 2007, during a close approach to the satellite, the Cassini apparatus discovered several giant lakes near the north pole, the largest of which reaches a length of 1000 km and is comparable in area to Caspian Sea. According to probe research and computer calculations, such lakes consist of carbon-hydrogen elements such as ethane C 2 H 6 -79%, methane CH 4 -10%, propane C 3 H 8 -7-8%, as well as a small amount of hydrogen cyanide 2-3% and about 1% butylene. Such lakes and seas, at terrestrial atmospheric pressure (100 kPa or 1 atm), would dissipate in a matter of seconds and turn into gas clouds. Some gases, such as propane and ethane, would remain at the bottom because they are heavier than air, while the methane would immediately rise up and dissipate into the atmosphere. On Titan, it's completely different. Low temperatures and pressure 1.5 times higher than the Earth's, maintain these substances in sufficient density for a liquid state. Scientists do not exclude the fact that life may well exist on the moon of Saturn in such seas and lakes. On Earth, life was formed due to the interaction and activity of liquid water, on titan instead of water, ethane and methane may well serve. It is clear that we are not talking about large and even small animals, but about microscopic, simple organisms. For example, bacteria that absorb molecular hydrogen and feed on acetylene and release methane in the process. How terrestrial animals inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide.
Wind on the surface of the satellite, its speed is very weak, no more than 0.5 m / s, however, as it rises, it increases. Already at an altitude of 10-30 km, the winds blow at a speed of 30 m/s and their direction coincides with the direction of rotation of the satellite. At an altitude of 120 km from the surface, the wind turns into the most powerful whirlwind storms and hurricanes, the speed of which rises to 80-100 meters per second.

An artist's view of Titan's panorama. Methane lake surrounded by rocky

mountain structures has a dark yellow or light brown color and harmonizes beautifully

with an orange-tinted sky, like the blue sea - with the blue atmosphere of the Earth

The main elements in the circulation and interaction of the atmosphere are methane and ethane,
which can form in the bowels of Titan and be released into the air when
eruption of volcanoes. In the lower atmosphere, they condense into a liquid
and forms clouds, and then falls to the surface as methane and ethane rains

Surface and structure

The surface of Titan, like most of the satellites of Saturn, is divided into dark and light regions, which are separated from each other by clear boundaries. Like the Earth, the surface of the satellite is divided into land areas - continents and the liquid part - oceans and seas from liquid "gases" of methane and ethane. In the near equatorial region in the bright region is the largest continent of Titan - Xanadu. This is a huge mainland, the size of Australia, is a hill, consisting of mountain ranges. The mountain ranges of the mainland rise to a height of more than 1 km. On their slopes, like Earth streams, liquid rivers flow down, forming on flat surfaces methane lakes. Some of the more fragile rocks are subject to erosion, and from methane rains and streams flowing down the slopes of liquid methane, caves are gradually formed in the mountains. The dark region of Titan is formed due to the accumulation of particles of hydrocarbon dust falling from the upper atmosphere, washed off by methane rains from high places and brought to the equatorial regions by winds.

It is very difficult to say exactly what the internal structure of Titan is. Presumably located in the center hard core from stone rocks, 2/3 the size of the radius of Titan (about 1700 km). Above the nucleus is mantle consisting of both dense water ice and methane hydrate. Due to the tidal forces of Saturn and nearby satellites, the core of the satellite heats up, and the energy generated inside pushes hot rocks to the surface. In addition, as on Earth, radioactive decays of chemical elements occur in the bowels of Titan, which serves as additional energy for volcanic eruptions.

In April 1973, a NASA spacecraft was launched towards the Giant Planets. "Pioneer-11". Six months later, he made a gravitational maneuver around Jupiter and headed further towards Saturn. And in September 1979, the probe passed within 354,000 km of Titan's outer atmosphere. This convergence helped scientists determine that surface temperatures were too cold to support life. Years later Voyager 1 approached the satellite at 5600 km, took a lot of fairly high-quality pictures of the atmosphere, determined the mass and size of the satellite, as well as some orbital characteristics. In the 90s, using the powerful optics of the Hubble telescope, the atmosphere of Titan was studied in more detail - in particular methane clouds. Scientists have found that methane gas, like water vapor, is moistened in the upper layers and becomes a liquid. Then, in this form, it falls to the surface as precipitation.

The last and more significant stage in the study of Titan is considered the mission of the interplanetary space station " Cassini-Huygens". It made its first flyby of Titan on October 26, 2004, at a distance of only 1200 km from the surface. From this close range, the probe confirmed the presence of methane rivers and lakes. Two months later, on December 25, Huygens separated from the outer probe and began a four-hundred-kilometer dive through the opaque layers of Titan's atmosphere. The descent lasted 2 hours and 28 minutes. During this time, on-board instruments detected a dense methane haze (cloud layers) at an altitude of 18-19 km, where the atmospheric pressure was approximately 50 kPa (0.5 atm). The outside temperature at the beginning of the descent was -202°C, while on the surface of Titan it was about -180°C. To exclude impact collision with the surface of the satellite, the apparatus descended on a special parachute. The Space Flight Directorate, who watched Huygens sink, were very hopeful of seeing liquid methane on the surface. But the apparatus, contrary to wishes, plunged onto solid ground.

The project of the future called "Titan Saturn System Mission". This will be the first seafaring in history

outside the earth. The device will for 3 months surf the ocean expanses from liquid

methane and admire the sunset of the giant Saturn with its rings

Three views of Titan, a moon of Saturn by the Cassini spacecraft. Left: In natural colors, created from images taken with three filters sensitive to red, green, and violet light. More or less like this Titanium will look to the human eye. Center: A near-infrared image showing the surface. Right: False color composition of one visible image and two infrared images. Green areas appear where Cassini could see the surface; red represents areas located in Titan's stratosphere. Received April 16, 2005 at distances from 168,200 to 173,000 km. Source: NASA/JPL.

Photo of Titan from Voyager 2, taken on August 23, 1981, from a distance of 2.3 million km. The southern hemisphere appears lighter, with a clear band at the equator and a dark collar at the north pole. All of these bands are associated with the circulation of clouds in Titan's atmosphere. Source: NASA/JPL.

Size comparison of Earth and Titan

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This is the second largest moon in the solar system after. Titan is larger than the planet Mercury in size, but less than half in mass. It is the only moon in the solar system that has a dense atmosphere. It is 10 times more powerful than the Earth, with a surface pressure of 60% more. Before the arrival of the Cassini spacecraft into orbit around Saturn in 2004, little was known about Titan's surface due to the presence of an orange haze in its atmosphere.

Discovery of Titan and naming

Titan was discovered by the Dutch scientist Christian Huygens on March 25, 1655, and was the first moon to be found with a telescope since the four Galilean satellites. Huygens called him simply Moon of Saturn. However, in accordance with the custom of the time, he did not announce his discovery. Instead, he disguised the news as an anagram. At the same time, using the verse of the poet Ovid "Admovere Oculis Distantia Sidera Nostris". He etched them around the edge of the objective of the telescope Huygens was using. Decoded and translated, the anagram reads: "The moon revolves around Saturn every 16 days and 4 hours." This value is very close to the current estimate of Titan's orbital period.

Scientist John Herschel suggested that the moon be named "Titan" in his 1847 publication "The Results of Astronomical Observations Made at the Cape of Good Hope". In Greek mythology, the Titans were the siblings of Kronos, the Greek equivalent of the Roman god Saturn. In the same publication, Herschel named six other moons of Saturn.

Atmosphere of Titan

The possibility of an atmosphere around Titan was first discussed in 1903. Then the Spanish astronomer Jose Comas Sola noticed that the disk of Titan seems brighter at its center than at its edges. The existence of an atmosphere was confirmed in 1944 by Gerard Kuiper at the University of Chicago. He determined the presence of methane in the spectrum of Titan.

Further observations, made in particular with the help of the Voyager probes, which flew over those parts in 1980 and 1981, and subsequently the Cassini-Huygens probe, showed that Titan's atmosphere consists of 98.4% nitrogen and 1.6 % of methane, with small amounts of other gases including various hydrocarbons (such as ethane, diacetylene, methyl acetylene, cyanoacetylene, acetylene, and propane), argon, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, cyanogen, hydrogen cyanide, and helium. In addition, Titan is the only one in the solar system that has a dense atmosphere rich in nitrogen.

Hydrocarbons are thought to form in Titan's upper atmosphere due to reactions involving the breakdown of methane by ultraviolet light and cosmic rays. This organic photochemistry creates an orange haze, densest at about 300 kilometers (200 miles), which obscures the surface at visible wavelengths, and also reflects a significant amount of infrared radiation into space, resulting in an "anti-greenhouse effect".

Cold world

Titan is one of two known celestial bodies (the other being Pluto) whose surface temperature is lower (by about 10K) than it would be in the absence of an atmosphere. Titan's atmosphere has a wide variety of organic materials. This is one of the reasons why astrobiologists are interested in Titan.

A person on the surface of Titan during the day would experience only one thousandth of the brightness of daylight available on the surface of the Earth. This comparison takes into account not only the thickness of the atmosphere, but also the greater distance of Titan from the Sun. However, the level of light on the surface of Titan is 350 times brighter than the brightness of light on Earth under a full moon.

The amount of methane in Titan's atmosphere must be constantly depleted. Therefore, there must be some mechanism on the surface that replenishes it. One explanation is that Titan has active volcanoes that emit methane.

Surface of Titan

Prior to the arrival of the Cassini-Huygens probe in June 2004, infrared observations from the Hubble Space Telescope provided a map of bright and dark regions on Titan, but the nature of these features remained uncertain. It was assumed that oceans or lakes of liquid ethane could cover most of the moon's surface, and that liquid methane could fall here as rain. According to another model, the bright regions seen by Hubble could be water ice. They lie in lowlands and are obscured by solid and liquid organic molecules.

A more detailed and accurate picture of Titan has begun to emerge thanks to images and other data sent by AMS Cassini-Huygens. During its first flyby of Titan, Cassini showed methane clouds and a giant impact crater. The most prominent feature was a bright region in the form of a cumulus cloud near the south pole. It is about 450 kilometers across and about 15 kilometers high. Measurements from the spacecraft have suggested that the clouds are likely composed of hydrocarbons and may be related to surface features. Cassini showed that some changes in surface brightness were circular, while others were linear. Several concentric objects have also been found at the south pole.

Mission Cassini-Huygens

A mosaic of nine pictures taken as Cassini flew past Titan on October 26, 2004 has given astronomers one of the most detailed views of the entire moon disk. Titan's surface features are brightest at the center of the disk, where the probe had the least atmosphere underneath. No visible craters have been found, suggesting that the moon likely has a young surface that is constantly being renewed. Astronomers are still unsure if the patterns on Titan's surface are caused by volcanic eruptions. Or they come from the displacement of rocks by wind, dust, or even rivers of liquid hydrocarbons.

On January 14, 2005, the Huygens probe successfully parachuted down and landed on the surface of Titan, returning stunning images both during the descent and from the surface.

Sometimes our blue Earth is called an ocean planet. But this name corresponds to a greater extent to the rather interesting satellite of Saturn, Titan. Water was discovered on it, covering its surface with an endless ocean. Perhaps it is there now, under the orange atmosphere and under the powerful ice crust, in the depths of cold waters, life is emerging?

Titan is the second largest moon in the solar system, with a diameter of 5152 kilometers. Only Jupiter's moon Ganymede (diameter 5268 kilometers) surpasses it in size. Titan orbits Saturn in a slightly elliptical orbit, and its orbit itself passes behind the giant planet's famous rings. This interesting satellite of Saturn was discovered by the Dutch astronomer Christian Huygens in 1655, and the name "Titan" became well-known and accepted only since 1847, when an article by John Herschel was published, who proposed this name to the largest satellite of Saturn.

Like our Moon, Titan demonstrates the phenomenon of synchronous rotation relative to Saturn, that is, it always faces the planet on one side. It goes around the giant in 15 days, 22 hours and 41 minutes, making exactly one revolution around its axis of rotation. This time balance arises due to tidal phenomena that occur on the satellite due to the forces of attraction.

The Voyager spacecraft first explored Titan, saw its dense and opaque atmosphere, and accurately measured the diameter. As a result, it turned out to be a geologically active celestial body - the core of Titan warms the satellite from the inside, and the outer layer of the ice "crust", located under the 400-kilometer atmosphere, is cooled to -180 ° C! In the atmosphere itself, the lion's share is nitrogen, oxygen is completely absent, and there are still impurities of argon and methane.

The Cassini mission flew past Titan six times and examined it in detail from 2006 to 2011. The shape of the surface of the satellite changed during its passage in orbit - since the orbit is elliptical, at the moments of the minimum approach to Saturn, Titan became slightly "elongated" due to tidal humps, and at the maximum distance - almost spherical. At the same time, tidal humps, changing the diameter of the satellite, increased it by almost 10 meters! This means that under the hard crust there is an easily mobile layer.

Most likely, this is water, and a whole "titanic" ocean! It can be of great depth and extend up to 200 kilometers from a "crust" 50 kilometers thick. Manifestations of volcanism can be sources of methane found in large quantities in the upper atmosphere of the satellite.

This should lead to a greenhouse effect and an increase in temperature in the satellite's atmosphere. But in the lower layers there is a thick orange fog, consisting of organic molecules, and it absorbs solar radiation well and releases infrared radiation from the surface. This "anti-greenhouse" effect cools Titan's surface by about 10 degrees.

The climate of Titan is a real puzzle for climate scientists. What is the role of methane, a satellite of oil fields on Earth, in the formation of "titanic" weather? It is assumed that seas of this liquefied gas can sway on its icy "crust", evaporate and condense into clouds, and pour methane rains onto the surface.

However, this methane cycle in the satellite's atmosphere must be replenished from deep sources (similar to the water cycle on Earth). It should be noted that methane is a volatile and unstable chemical compound, which is why numerous variants of organic molecules were found in the atmosphere. The Huygens lander made it possible to create a model of the circulation of the atmosphere of Titan. However, far from all the mysteries of the mysterious Satellite of Saturn have been solved - many of them are still waiting for those who can give exhaustive answers to them.

The Cassini probe recorded changes in the speed of rotation around its own axis of this largest satellite of Saturn, as well as wind erosion of the surface. They are possible only under the condition of sufficient mobility of the crust, located on some liquid base. This discovery is considered a sensation in science.

For many years, astronomers have been actively discussing the possibility of finding the ocean under the thickness of ice on Jupiter's moon Europa. The possibility of oceanic existence is also being considered on another satellite, Ganymede. Many scientists believe that there are much more internal oceans on the planets than external ones. Such statements change the ideas about the protein life of our Universe.

Unlike Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, Titan has a dense atmosphere composed mostly of nitrogen. Its pressure is much greater than the earth's atmosphere. Constant cloudiness makes it difficult to study the surface of the satellite, but the dropped Huygens probe reported a lot of interesting data. It hit the surface, wet from the recent hydrocarbon rain, and covered in numerous methane pools.

The first images of Titan were taken using a telescope installed in the mountains of Chile. The surface of this satellite is dotted with methane and ethane lakes. It has its own nature, outwardly reminiscent of the earth. Cold, low-temperature landscapes. Frequent thunderstorms and carbon dioxide rain falling on icy ground. Clouds of orange color from hydrates of carbonaceous compounds. Now scientists of the world consider Saturn's satellite - Titan "the world of the future." The satellite planet is at the stage of development that the Earth passed billions of years ago.

Vanga, a Bulgarian clairvoyant, said that all arriving aliens come from the third planet from Earth, which they call Vamfim. This planet is Saturn, or its satellite Titan. The Cassini probe transmitted a photograph from the surface of Saturn showing a hexagonal vortex in the planet's atmosphere. Its unusual shape is mysterious. For example, on Jupiter, the vortices are oval in appearance.

Scientists have long been interested in planets with gravity similar to Earth's. This is what Titan is. Beneath icy mountains and hydrocarbon rivers, it has a water mantle. Organic compounds in the atmosphere of this satellite may not be the only ones. Perhaps somewhere at a depth more complex protein objects live. It is very cold under the ice shell. It's minus 180 degrees on the surface of Titan. However, the satellite has a hot core, this fact helps optimists to assume the existence of some life forms. The diameter of Titan is more than 5 thousand kilometers, which means that the thickness of the oceanic mantle can be significant.

Video about Satellite Titan

The Titan satellite is a convenient space base, since a very low speed is required to start from this satellite, only about 3 km / s. Scientists are busy modeling its surface, taking into account the internal ocean. They are trying to calculate its approximate temperature, assuming that it is well above zero at depth. Depending on the temperature indicators on our planet, its species diversity is also growing. The same is possible on Titan.

For more than thirty years, amazing discoveries have been taking place in our solar system. There is a lot of water on the planets. For example, Neptune, in the full sense of the word, justifies its name in the light of modern scientific data. There is also water under the reddish Martian dunes. The world, which seems to us a fantasy, is actually quite real.

Video about the study of Saturn's satellite - Titan: