The Surface of Titan

Astronomy Picture of the Day · 1999-08-04 · NASA (public domain)

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The Surface of Titan — APOD for 1999-08-04

If sailing the hydrocarbon seas of Titan , beware of gasoline rain. Such might be a travel advisory issued next millennium for adventurers visiting Titan , the largest moon of Saturn . Images of Titan 's surface were released last week from the Keck 10-meter telescope featuring the finest details yet resolved. Peering into Titan 's thick smog atmosphere with infrared light, complex features interpreted as oceans, glaciers, and rock became visible. The high-resolution infrared image pictured above was made possible using an unblurring technique called speckle interferometry . The interplanetary probe Cassini will reach Saturn and Titan in 2004 to better explore this unusual world.

Astronomy Picture of the Day for 1999-08-04 — image & explanation courtesy of NASA (public domain), mirrored at Tukuk-OS for reading and search convenience.

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