AST 248 Lecture Notes - Lecture 21: Tholin, Tidal Resonance, Tidal Locking

• School: Stony Brook University
• Department: Astronomy
• Course: AST 248
• Professor: James Lattimer

Document Summary

O(cid:374)l(cid:455) (cid:373)oo(cid:374) (cid:449)ith de(cid:374)se at(cid:373)osphere, (cid:1005). (cid:1009) earth"s. At(cid:373)osphere"s e(cid:454)iste(cid:374)(cid:272)e a result of relati(cid:448)el(cid:455) (cid:272)old for(cid:373)atio(cid:374) te(cid:373)perature a(cid:374)d high gra(cid:448)it(cid:455) Major gases are n2 (98. 4%), ch4 (1. 6%), ar; smog (hydrocarbon, tholin) layer at high altitude. Lack of noble gases kr, xe and ne suggest atmosphere formed as a result of outgassing rather than by cometary impacts. Haze results in anti-greenhouse effect: opaque to visibile, clear to infrared. Methane (ch4) is present and must be replenished, indicating volcanos or lakes of methane or ethane (c2h6). Surface temperature is 94 k, methane rain may exist. Surface is complex, fluid-processed and geologically young (h2o and nh3 volcanos?) Evidence for h2o-nh3 sub-surface ocean from elf (extremely long frequency radio waves. 3400 km radius rocky core surrounded by several ice layers. Systematic shift of surface implies crust floats on ocean. Conditions on titan might be suitable for some terrestrial psychrophiles, which utilize organic chemicals for both food and energy.