Titans Tropical Lakes

[barkis]

Nasa have released Cassini spacecraft images of Titan showing tropical lakes.

Ron.

[Tinker1947]

They lakes of water or methane.....

[kenmyers]

They lakes of water or methane.....

They are methane/ethane lakes. the rocks, solid land, is actually super dense water ice.

amazing photo!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Neat image. Not the kind of lakes to go for a quick swim, regardless of their "tropical" nature

[Shibby]

Cassini has imaged countless lakes over the years. The most detailed are the radar images, such as this one:

http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/jpeg/PIA01943.jpg

[barkis]

Yes, for the benefit of people who perhaps are new, or lacking in information about Titan, Nasa ought to have

been more explicit when describing the Tropical Lakes Lakes of The Saturnian Moon Titan.

Certainly they are not water lakes, but liquid Hydrocarbons such as Ethane, and Methane. Not lakes any creature might wish to swim in, let alone Humans .

As the only Solar System moon with an atmosphere, Titan was a great candidate for exploration, if only remotely, and the scientific information gleaned by the Huygens probe, and the low orbital passes of the moon by the Cassini spacecraft, which brings us these wonderful images of the moon, has been terrific.

We mustn't become too blasé about this sort of research. I think the scientists and engineers who build and plan these missions, deserve our appreciation.

I look forward to the Mars Curiosity landing with great anticipation, but still drool over the accomplishments of the Mars Rovers Opportunity, and Spirit. Their contribution to our knowledge of Mars, is nothing short of miraculous.

Ron.

[Naemeth]

I find it ironic how here we are worried about CO2 and Methane as Greenhouse gases, where Titan is full of them, and full of anti-greenhouse gases too.

Who knows what Titan would be like if it were our Moon.. well, it would probably have no atmosphere and be like our own Moon now.

[dr_robot]

Nice pictures!