Saturn's moon Titan may not have a buried ocean as long suspected, new study suggests

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Saturn's elephantine satellite Titan whitethorn not person a immense underground water aft all.

Titan alternatively whitethorn clasp heavy layers of crystal and slush much akin to Earth’s polar seas, with pockets of melted h2o wherever beingness could perchance past and adjacent thrive, scientists reported Wednesday.

The squad led by researchers astatine NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory challenged the decade-long presumption of a buried planetary water astatine Titan aft taking a caller look astatine observations made years agone by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft astir Saturn.

They accent that nary 1 has recovered immoderate signs of beingness astatine Titan, the star system’s 2nd largest satellite spanning 3,200 miles (5,150 kilometers) and brimming with lakes of liquid methane connected its frosty surface.

But with the latest findings suggesting a slushy, near-melting environment, “there is beardown justification for continued optimism regarding the imaginable for extraterrestrial life,” said the University of Washington’s Baptiste Journaux, who took portion successful the survey published successful the diary Nature.

As to what signifier of beingness that mightiness be, perchance strictly microscopic, “nature has repeatedly demonstrated acold greater creativity than the astir imaginative scientists," helium said successful an email.

JPL’s Flavio Petricca, the pb author, said Titan’s water whitethorn person frozen successful the past and is presently melting, oregon its hydrosphere mightiness beryllium evolving toward implicit freezing.

Computer models suggest these layers of ice, slush and h2o widen to a extent of much than 340 miles (550 kilometers). The outer crystal ammunition is thought to beryllium astir 100 miles (170 kilometers) deep, covering layers of slush and pools of h2o that could spell down different 250 miles (400 kilometers). This h2o could beryllium arsenic lukewarm arsenic 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius).

Because Titan is tidally locked, the aforesaid broadside of the satellite faces Saturn each the time, conscionable similar our ain satellite and Earth. Saturn’s gravitational propulsion is truthful aggravated that it deforms the moon’s surface, creating bulges arsenic precocious arsenic 30 feet (10 meters) erstwhile the 2 bodies are closest.

Through improved information processing, Petricca and his squad managed to measurement the timing betwixt the highest gravitational tug and the rising of Titan’s surface. If the satellite held a bedewed ocean, the effect would beryllium immediate, Petricca said, but a 15-hour spread was detected, indicating an interior of slushy crystal with pockets of liquid water. Computer modeling of Titan’s predisposition successful abstraction supported their theory.

Sapienza University of Rome’s Luciano Iess, whose erstwhile studies utilizing Cassini information indicated a hidden water astatine Titan, is not convinced by the latest findings.

While “certainly intriguing and volition stimulate renewed treatment ... astatine present, the disposable grounds looks surely not capable to exclude Titan from the household of water worlds," Iess said successful an email.

NASA’s planned Dragonfly ngo — featuring a helicopter-type trade owed to motorboat to Titan aboriginal this decennary — is expected to supply much clarity connected the moon’s innards. Journaux is portion of that team.

Saturn leads the star system’s satellite inventory with 274. Jupiter’s satellite Ganymede is conscionable a small larger than Titan, with a imaginable underground ocean. Other suspected h2o worlds see Saturn’s Enceladus and Jupiter’s Europa, some of which are believed to person geysers of h2o erupting from their frozen crusts.

Launched successful 1997, Cassini reached Saturn successful 2004, orbiting the ringed satellite and flying past its moons until deliberately plunging done Saturn’s ambiance successful 2017.

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