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The atmosphere of Titan is the dense layer of gases surrounding Titan, the largest moon of Saturn.Titan is the only natural satellite of a planet in the Solar System with an atmosphere that is denser than the atmosphere of Earth and is one of two moons with an atmosphere significant enough to drive weather (the other being the atmosphere of Triton). [4]
Haze in Titan's atmosphere contributes to an anti-greenhouse effect by reflecting sunlight back into space, making its surface significantly colder than its upper atmosphere. [3] This partially compensates for the greenhouse warming, and keeps the surface somewhat cooler than would otherwise be expected from the greenhouse effect alone. [ 6 ]
In addition to ethane, Titan's atmosphere produces a wide range of more complex photochemical products, such as nitriles and benzene. These are believed to precipitate out and flow into Titan's seas. Radar data suggests that Ligeia Mare's seabed is likely covered in a thick layer of these organic compounds. [10] [11]
"Titan is really an Earth-like world with a diverse set of very familiar surface morphologies shaped by a methane-based hydrologic system operating in a dense nitrogen atmosphere," said Cornell ...
Saturn's largest moon has been fully mapped for the first time.
Titan is the largest moon of Saturn and the second-largest in the Solar System.It is the only moon known to have an atmosphere denser than the Earth's and is the only known object in space—other than Earth—on which there is clear evidence that stable bodies of liquid exist.
Mosaic of three Huygens images of channel system on Titan. The possibility of hydrocarbon seas on Titan was first suggested based on Voyager 1 and 2 data that showed Titan to have a thick atmosphere of approximately the correct temperature and composition to support them, but direct evidence was not obtained until 1995 when data from Hubble and other observations suggested the existence of ...
It turns out that the moon of Saturn has certain advantages for future space colonists not present on the moon or Mars.