Pinging Saturn's Moon Titan

CassiniScientist (6:42 PM): You could try, but there's virtually no free oxygen and methane on Titan is like water on Earth. That's because Titan is so cold, methane is condensed into a liquid. So you get rivers carved by liquid methane and methane lakes.

Dave on Earth (6:42 PM): Strange indeed. Also, methane is a gas similar to propane I might find in a patio grill tank, right?

CassiniScientist (6:43 PM): Yes. It is too warm on Earth for methane to be liquid here.

Dave on Earth (6:43 PM): it must be REALLY cold to liquefy methane... how cold does it get on Titan?

CassiniScientist (6:44 PM): The surface is about 95 Kelvin - that is, -288 F

Dave on Earth (6:45 PM): Brrr!

Dave on Earth (6:45 PM): This might sound like a no-brainer, but would you - if you had the chance and the right technology - ever visit Titan?

CassiniScientist (6:46 PM): Given the right space gear, yes. If I could be sure I'd survive and not freeze solid in a second! But we're a long, long way from being able to do that.

Dave on Earth (6:47 PM): Then you weren't lying when you said you're an explorer! Speaking of which, Cassini has swung by Titan before. Why visit it a few more times?

CassiniScientist (6:49 PM): Just talking from the RADAR's point of view, each time we fly by we only see about 1% to 2% of the surface. Making things more difficult is that we can only use the radar imaging mode when we are pretty close (less than several thousand km) to the surface. So, there is still a lot of unexplored territory to see!

Dave on Earth (6:50 PM): Tell me a bit more about RADAR - is this the same kind of technology used to spot airplanes in the sky? And a follow-up: What kind of details have you seen so far on Titan?

CassiniScientist (6:53 PM): Our instrument is most similar to the radar instruments on Earth-observing satellites, but the principle is the same. You can use radar to build images.

CassiniScientist (6:54 PM): One thing I find really fascinating is that the surface of Titan is remarkably like the Earth's, geologically speaking. We have all the major geologic processes working on Titan that we have on the Earth: We have volcanoes (though we have not found an active one yet), we have erosion (wind dunes, rivers), we have a few impact craters, we have mountains.

Dave on Earth (6:55 PM): That reminds me. I've heard some scientists say that Titan today might appear similar to a young Earth billions of years ago. What's up with that?

CassiniScientist (6:55 PM): In some ways. But young Earth had a lot of active volcanoes, and try as we may, we haven't found one active volcano on Titan. We have had some hints of activity, but nothing firm - yet.

Dave on Earth (6:56 PM): One last question for you, because I know you have to catch some super-important meeting in about 4 minutes.

CassiniScientist (6:56 PM): Fire away

Dave on Earth (6:57 PM): If Saturn's moons were pieces of fruit, what kind of fruit would Titan be, and why?

CassiniScientist (6:58 PM): Fruit???? Let me think...an exotic fruit. Mango. But of course where I come from, that's not exotic!

Dave on Earth (6:59 PM): Thanks very much Rosaly. Is there anything else you'd like to add before we part digital ways?

CassiniScientist (7:00 PM): Nope! Loved talking with you, and I'll keep pondering that fruit question. Bye from the Land of Fruits and Nuts!

Dave on Earth (7:00 PM): I've been told I'm a little nutty. Thanks for chatting!

CassiniScientist (7:00 PM): Bye

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