Other
Scientific paper
May 2006
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006agusm.p41b..03l&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2007, abstract #P41B-03
Other
5405 Atmospheres (0343, 1060), 5410 Composition (1060, 3672), 6280 Saturnian Satellites, 6281 Titan
Scientific paper
Two stellar occultations December 14, 2004 provided an opportunity to probe Titan's atmospheric structure and composition. Both occultations occurred on the egress leg of the flyby within fifteen minutes of one another. The occultation of Spica tracked across the northern hemisphere around 50 North and 40 West. Shaula was tracked through the atmosphere around 50 South and 40 West. Both occultations were tracked between 0 and 3000 kilometers and occurred near local midnight. Comparative analysis of the differences between these two occultations provide insight in to the hemispherical variation present in Titan's atmosphere during the northern hemisphere's late winter. Comparison of the Shaula and Spica occultations above 650 kilometers shows no discernable differences in the abundance of hydrocarbon species between the Northern and Southern hemisphere. However, comparison of the data indicates an elevated ethylene (C2H4) and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) abundance in the Northern hemisphere relative to the Southern below 600 kilometers. Previous analysis of the Shaula data indicated a line of sight abundance at 550 kilometers of 5.2*1016 and 1.7*1017, of ethylene and HCN respectively. To fit the Spica data, below 600 kilometers, the line of sight abundance for ethylene is increased to 1.0*1017 and the HCN abundance reduced by a factor of 10. Terrestrial observations have detected water in Titan's atmosphere, but resolution limitations have limited the localization of the signature. Furthermore, microphysical models have predicted that water ice clouds may form at specific levels in the atmosphere, in a process analogous to noctilucent clouds on Earth. Analysis of the Shaula data shows no signature of water at any altitude. Water is present, however, in the Spica data below 575 kilometers, as predicted by earlier models. The restriction of the water ice clouds to the northern hemisphere, where it was late-winter, suggests a seasonal dependence on the distribution of Titan's water ice clouds.
Barth E.
Larsen Kristopher William
Shemansky Donald
Stewart Aimee
Toon Brian
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