Other
Scientific paper
Sep 2006
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006dps....38.3207h&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #38, #32.07; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 38, p.544
Other
Scientific paper
Under the pressure-temperature conditions on Titan, methane, a large atmospheric component amounting perhaps to a 3-5% of the atmosphere, is close to its triple point, potentially playing a similar role as water on Earth. The Huygens probe and Cassini radar images have shown a terrain shaped by erosion of probably liquid origin, suggestive of past rain. On the other hand, Voyager IRIS spectroscopic observations of Titan indicate that methane saturation occurs amounting perhaps to 150%, suggesting that the satellite should regularly be covered by methane clouds. Telescopic observations from the Earth and Cassini have shown that clouds are localized, transient and fast evolving, in particular in the South Polar Region (currently in its summer season until its autumn equinox in 2008).
To explain these observations, we investigate different scenarios of moist convective storms on Titan using a three-dimensional cloud resolving model that incorporates microphysics and allows computing the precipitation that reaches the surface as a function of the concentration of cloud condensation nuclei in the atmosphere. We show that under the appropriate conditions, precipitation rates comparable to intense tropical storms on Earth could take place. A typical storm may form when the methane humidity is on the order of 80%, developing vertical velocities of 20 ms-1 with the updrafts reaching up to 30 km height during a total life-span of a few hours, producing maximum precipitation rates of 100 kgm-2, that are comparable to flash-floods on Earth.
Acknowledgements: This work has been funded by Spanish MCYT PNAYA2003-03216, fondos FEDER and Grupos UPV 15946/2004. R. Hueso acknowledges an RyC research contract form the Spanish MEC.
Hueso Ricardo
Sanchez-Lavega Agustín.
No associations
LandOfFree
Methane Storms and Rain on Titan's Atmosphere from Numerical Simulations does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Methane Storms and Rain on Titan's Atmosphere from Numerical Simulations, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Methane Storms and Rain on Titan's Atmosphere from Numerical Simulations will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1000322