spacetoday.net: New images glimpse Titan's atmosphere and surface

Posted: Thu, Dec 19, 2002, 8:37 AM ET (1337 GMT)
Titan image from Keck 2 telescope (M. Brown et al.)

A new set of images released Wednesday offer the best view yet of the atmosphere and surface of Saturn's moon Titan. The images were taken a year ago in joint observations at the Keck 2 and Gemini North telescopes in Hawaii and are published this week in separate papers in the journals Nature and Astrophysical Journal. The images clearly shows methane clouds forming over Titan's south pole in a manner similar to thunderstorm clouds on Earth. Other images also show surface features, including a bright "continent" seen in past images that is surrounded by darker areas that may be either ethane seas or tar-covered lowlands. The images, capable of resolving features as small as 300 kilometers across, are considered the best views yet of Saturn's largest moon.