Collection:
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection Collection NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection Collection
Title:
Titan Features and Interactions Title Titan Features and Interactions Title
Original Caption Released with Image:
This radar image, obtained by Cassini's radar instrument during a near-polar flyby on Feb. 22, 2007, shows dunes surrounding a bright feature on Saturn's moon Titan. Dunes have been previously seen on Titan, so far concentrated near the equator. They are thought to be composed of small hydrocarbon or water ice particles-- probably about 250 microns in diameter, similar to sand grains on Earth. These are formed into dunes by the prevailing west-to-east surface winds. Because of the shape and length of the dunes, they are probably "longitudinal" (lying in the same direction as the average wind) rather than transverse dunes, which form across the wind and are more common on Earth. There are several kinds of interaction between the dunes and the brighter features in this image. At the left, the dunes seem to be covering the bright material, while at the center and right, they seem to be terminated against it. At the lower center and lower right, they flow around it (see also PIA08738 and PIA08454). These various interactions will help us to determine the nature of both of these features. This image was taken in synthetic aperture mode at 700-meter (2,300-foot) resolution. North is toward the left. The image is centered at about 3.5 degrees south latitude and 37.3 degrees west longitude. The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter was designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The radar instrument was built by JPL and the Italian Space Agency, working with team members from the United States and several European countries. For more information about the Cassini-Huygens mission visit http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.cfm. Original_Caption_Rel eased_with_Image This radar image, obtained by Cassini's radar instrument during a near-polar flyby on Feb. 22, 2007, shows dunes surrounding a bright feature on Saturn's moon Titan. Dunes have been previously seen on Titan, so far concentrated near the equator. They are thought to be composed of small hydrocarbon or water ice particles-- probably about 250 microns in diameter, similar to sand grains on Earth. These are formed into dunes by the prevailing west-to-east surface winds. Because of the shape and length of the dunes, they are probably "longitudinal" (lying in the same direction as the average wind) rather than transverse dunes, which form across the wind and are more common on Earth. There are several kinds of interaction between the dunes and the brighter features in this image. At the left, the dunes seem to be covering the bright material, while at the center and right, they seem to be terminated against it. At the lower center and lower right, they flow around it (see also PIA08738 and PIA08454). These various interactions will help us to determine the nature of both of these features. This image was taken in synthetic aperture mode at 700-meter (2,300-foot) resolution. North is toward the left. The image is centered at about 3.5 degrees south latitude and 37.3 degrees west longitude. The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter was designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The radar instrument was built by JPL and the Italian Space Agency, working with team members from the United States and several European countries. For more information about the Cassini-Huygens mission visit http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.cfm. Original Caption Released with Image
Image Credit:
NASA/JPL Image_Credit NASA/JPL Image Credit
Produced By:
JPL Produced_By JPL Produced By
Mission:
Cassini Mission Cassini Mission
Spacecraft:
Cassini Orbiter Spacecraft Cassini Orbiter Spacecraft
Target Name:
Titan Target_Name Titan Target Name
Is a satellite of:
Saturn Is_a_satellite_of Saturn Is a satellite of
Instrument:
Radar Mapper Instrument Radar Mapper Instrument
Product Size:
640 samples x 1151 lines Product_Size 640 samples x 1151 lines Product Size
Primary Data Set:
Cassini Primary_Data_Set Cassini Primary Data Set
facet_what:
Moon facet_what Moon facet_what
facet_what:
Earth facet_what Earth facet_what
facet_what:
Polar facet_what Polar facet_what
facet_what:
Saturn facet_what Saturn facet_what
facet_what:
Cassini facet_what Cassini facet_what
facet_what:
Titan facet_what Titan facet_what
facet_what:
Cassini Orbiter facet_what Cassini Orbiter facet_what
facet_what:
Huygens Probe facet_what Huygens Probe facet_what
facet_what:
Cassini-Huygens facet_what Cassini-Huygens facet_what
facet_what:
Radar Mapper facet_what Radar Mapper facet_what
facet_what:
Titan (Saturn Moon) facet_what Titan (Saturn Moon) facet_what
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory facet_where Jet Propulsion Laboratory facet_where
facet_where:
Saturn facet_where Saturn facet_where
facet_where:
California facet_where California facet_where
facet_where:
Washington facet_where Washington facet_where
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) facet_where Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) facet_where
facet_where:
Washington, D.C. facet_where Washington, D.C. facet_where
facet_where:
United States of America facet_where United States of America facet_where
Image #:
PIA09181 Image_# PIA09181 Image #
UID:
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA09181 UID SPD-PHOTJ-PIA09181 UID
orignial url:
http://photojournal… orignial_url http://photojournal… orignial url

Titan Features and Interactions

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Titan Features and Interactions