Cassini-Huygens Discovers the Existence of Seas on Saturn's Moon Titan

One of the latest missions to space, called the Cassini-Huygens mission, has recently discovered the existence of seas on Saturn's moon Titan. Tomorrow, the spacecraft will complete its twenty-eighth scheduled flyby of the moon during this four-year endeavor which began in the middle part of 2004.

The most stunning images of Saturn and its planetary system are now available all thanks to Cassini-Huygens, the first spacecraft to go into orbit around the planet. Combining to produce a total of $3.26 billion, the U.S., European Space Agency, and Italian Space Agency are currently making history.

In a press release dated the 13^th of March, 2007, NASA declares their discovery of seas on Saturn's moon, Titan. Titan is Saturn's largest moon and the second-largest in our solar system. It is considered by some to be a true sister of planet Earth because its current composition, including the organic composition of its ground, is very similar to that of early Earth.

The mission description provides a more detailed overview of these similarities:

"Data from the Huygens probe, which touched down on Titan's surface in January 2005, and the Cassini orbiter has shown that many of the processes that occur on Earth also apparently take place on Titan -- wind, rain, volcanism, tectonic activity, as well as river channels, and drainage patterns all seem to contribute in shaping Titan's surface."

Radar from the spacecraft Cassini has detected "several very dark features" on the moon, the largest of which measures at least 39,000 square miles. Located towards the northern pole of Titan, the possibility that this sea is larger than previously-mentioned is high, as only portions of it have been detected. Scientists have speculated that the bodies on Titan's surface are most likely comprised of liquid methane or ethane because gas forms of both methane and ethane can be found in the moon's clouds and atmosphere.

The exact composition of these bodies, including whether or not they are liquid, will be determined at a later date through additional flybys and radar detection. In fact, the instrument is currently being reassigned to point directly at this largest dark area during a flyby scheduled in May of this year.

If you are interested in learning more about Saturn, Titan, the Cassini-Huygens mission, or NASA itself, visit the Cassini mission page [http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/cassini/main/index.html] or NASA's official webpage. [http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm] A number of amazing new photos and videos of Saturn and its moons are also posted there almost, if not, daily.