Titan, the largest moon of Saturn, has a unique atmosphere that transforms simple gases like methane and nitrogen into more complex organic compounds. In a new study, planetary researchers at the University of Texas at San Antonio, the University of California Santa Cruz and Johns Hopkins University explored what happens to these organic compounds when they reach Titan’s surface. They found that most molecules, including all nitriles, triple-bonded hydrocarbons, and benzene, would land as solids. They also examined whether floating rafts can explain a mysterious feature on Titan’s lakes known as the ‘magic islands.’ By looking at how long the materials will float for each scenario, the authors suggest that the magic islands might be made of large chunks of porous organic solids.
A hazy orange atmosphere 50% thicker than Earth’s and rich in methane and other organic molecules blankets Titan.
Its surface is covered with dark dunes of organic material and seas of liquid methane and ethane.
Stranger yet are what appear in radar imagery as shifting bright spots on the seas’ surfaces that can last a few hours to several weeks or more.
Planetary scientists first spotted these ephemeral ‘magic islands’ in 2014 with the NASA/ESA Cassini-Huygens mission and have since been trying to figure out what they are.
Previous studies suggested they could be phantom islands caused by waves or real islands made of suspended solids, floating solids, or bubbles of nitrogen gas.
University of Texas at San Antonio researcher Xinting Yu and colleagues wondered if a closer look at the relationship between Titan’s atmosphere, liquid lakes, and the solid materials deposited on the moon’s surface could reveal the cause of these mysterious islands.
“I wanted to investigate whether the magic islands could actually be organics floating on the surface, like pumice that can float on water here on Earth before finally sinking,” Dr. Yu said.
The authors first…
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