Titan "seas" made of sand
Posted: Fri, May 5, 2006, 12:17 PM ET (1617 GMT)
Dark areas on the surface of Saturn's moon Titan previously thought to be liquid hydrocarbon oceans are in fact vast areas of sand dunes, scientists report. In a paper published in Friday's issue of the journal Science, researchers using radar data from the Cassini spacecraft concluded that the dark areas previous spotted in the moon's equatorial regions are seas of sand dunes similar to those found in Arabia or Namibia. The dunes are created by tidal-driven winds, rather than solar energy-driven winds. Unlike the Earth, the sands are not thought to be made of grains of silicates but instead some mixture of organic materials and/or water ice grains.
Dark areas on the surface of Saturn's moon Titan previously thought to be liquid hydrocarbon oceans are in fact vast areas of sand dunes, scientists report. In a paper published in Friday's issue of the journal Science, researchers using radar data from the Cassini spacecraft concluded that the dark areas previous spotted in the moon's equatorial regions are seas of sand dunes similar to those found in Arabia or Namibia. The dunes are created by tidal-driven winds, rather than solar energy-driven winds. Unlike the Earth, the sands are not thought to be made of grains of silicates but instead some mixture of organic materials and/or water ice grains.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Wednesday, September 9
Space Command Maneuvers Satellites Across Multiple Orbits in New Exercise
Air and Space Forces Magazine — 12:30 am ET (0430 GMT) Space Force Identifies Lake Kickapoo, Texas, As Third DARC Site
Aviation Week — 12:26 am ET (0426 GMT) U.S. Space Force Again Prepares For Upgraded GPS Ground Segment
Aviation Week — 12:26 am ET (0426 GMT) Rocket Lab Intros Solar Cells Without Germanium Substrates
Aviation Week — 12:26 am ET (0426 GMT) "I love the thrill of the chase": Sir Peter Beck on turning his love of rockets into a multibillion dollar space company
Newstalk ZB (New Zealand) — 12:24 am ET (0424 GMT) |
