A soft solid surface on Titan as revealed by the Huygens Surface Science Package

John C. Zarnecki (), Mark R. Leese, Brijen Hathi, Andrew J. Ball, Axel Hagermann, Martin C. Towner, Ralph D. Lorenz, J. Anthony M. McDonnell, Simon F. Green, Manish R. Patel, Timothy J. Ringrose, Philip D. Rosenberg, Karl R. Atkinson, Mark D. Paton, Marek Banaszkiewicz, Benton C. Clark, Francesca Ferri, Marcello Fulchignoni, Nadeem A. L. Ghafoor, Günter Kargl, Håkan Svedhem, John Delderfield, Manuel Grande, David J. Parker, Peter G. Challenor and John E. Geake
Additional contact information
John C. Zarnecki: The Open University
Mark R. Leese: The Open University
Brijen Hathi: The Open University
Andrew J. Ball: The Open University
Axel Hagermann: The Open University
Martin C. Towner: The Open University
Ralph D. Lorenz: University of Arizona, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
J. Anthony M. McDonnell: The Open University
Simon F. Green: The Open University
Manish R. Patel: The Open University
Timothy J. Ringrose: The Open University
Philip D. Rosenberg: The Open University
Karl R. Atkinson: The Open University
Mark D. Paton: The Open University
Marek Banaszkiewicz: Polish Academy of Sciences
Benton C. Clark: Lockheed Martin Astronautics
Francesca Ferri: University of Padova
Marcello Fulchignoni: Paris Observatory
Nadeem A. L. Ghafoor: MD Robotics
Günter Kargl: Austrian Academy of Sciences
Håkan Svedhem: ESA/ESTEC, Research and Scientific Support Department
John Delderfield: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton
Manuel Grande: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton
David J. Parker: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton
Peter G. Challenor: Southampton Oceanography Centre
John E. Geake: UMIST

Nature, 2005, vol. 438, issue 7069, 792-795

Abstract: New views of Titan The Huygens probe landed on Titan on 14 January this year, and seven papers published in this issue record the encounter. They describe a world that resembles a primitive Earth, complete with weather systems and geological activity. The ‘Huygens on Titan’ section opens with an overview of the descent and landing and a News and Views piece. Tomasko et al. describe the dry riverbed and drainage channels seen during Huygens' descent, evidence that liquid methane falls as rain or erupts from cryovolcanoes, periodically flooding the surface. This paper includes the images used on the cover to the Huygens section. Niemann et al. measured the abundances of isotopes of argon, nitrogen and carbon in the atmosphere, and conclude that there is no evidence that Titan's methane comes from biological activity. Fulchignoni et al. obtained precise measurements of temperature and pressure from the upper atmosphere right down to the surface. On the way down Huygens recorded evidence for lightning. Zarnecki et al. report that the probe landed on a relatively smooth surface of icy grains with the consistency of wet clay or sand. Isräl et al. report that the aerosols in Titan's clouds have solid cores made from complex organic molecules containing carbon and nitrogen. And Bird et al. found that on average Titan's winds blow in the same direction as the moon rotates, and that close to the surface these winds are very weak, travelling at around walking speed.

Date: 2005
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DOI: 10.1038/nature04211

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