Earthly Analogues for the Limnology, and Astrobiological Potential on Titan (Invited)

Details Earthly Analogues for the Limnology, and Astrobiological Potential on Titan (Invited) Earthly Analogues for the Limnology, and Astrobiological Potential on Titan (Invited)

Dec 2009

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009agufm.p54c..05p&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2009, abstract #P54C-05

Biology

[0406] Biogeosciences / Astrobiology And Extraterrestrial Materials, [0456] Biogeosciences / Life In Extreme Environments, [0458] Biogeosciences / Limnology

Scientific paper

Titan fly-bys by Cassini detected numerous hydrocarbon lakes in the polar regions. These lakes, particularly those in the northern-hemisphere, constitute the strongest evidence yet that a condensable-liquid hydrological methane cycle is active in Titan’s surface and atmosphere in which the lakes are filled through rainfall and/or intersection with the subsurface liquid methane table. Fluid modeling of these lakes reveals that some undergo periods of density stratification and deep convective mixing and possible sediment resuspension. The astrobiological potential of Titan’s lakes is likely to depend on how long the lakes persist, whether they freeze up or remain liquid for a long periods, and the presence of favorable bioenergetics required for synthesis of complex molecules. The environment on Titan appears to meet the basic requirements for life, which include thermodynamic disequilibrium, abundant carbon containing molecules, and a fluid environment. We can learn much about the limnological conditions and astrobiological potential of Titan through studies of earthly analogues. I will present physical, chemical and biological data from earths polar lakes in an attempt to provide new insight into limnological and astrobiological processes on Titan.

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