Geologic Features on Titan's Surface as Revealed by the Cassini Titan Radar Mapper

Details Geologic Features on Titan's Surface as Revealed by the Cassini Titan Radar Mapper Geologic Features on Titan's Surface as Revealed by the Cassini Titan Radar Mapper

Dec 2005

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2005agufm.p44a..02l&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2005, abstract #P44A-02

Mathematics

Logic

5470 Surface Materials And Properties, 5480 Volcanism (6063, 8148, 8450), 5499 General Or Miscellaneous, 6280 Saturnian Satellites, 6281 Titan

Scientific paper

The Cassini Titan Radar Mapper is one of the prime investigations to explore Titan's surface from orbit. Because of its almost opaque atmosphere, microwave remote sensing contributes uniquely to that investigation. The Titan Radar Mapper operates as a passive radiometer, scatterometer, altimeter, and synthetic aperture radar (SAR). We review the diversity of geologic features revealed using SAR during four fly-bys (Ta: October 2004, T3: February 2005, T7: September 2005, and T8: October 2005) and their context. Early SAR images from Ta and T3 reveal that Titan is very geologically complex (see Elachi et al., 2005, Science 13, 970-4). A variety of landforms and surface units were characterized morphologically and mapped, based on brightness variations, general planform shape and texture. Significant differences were seen in the geology between the Ta swath (centered at ~ 50N, 80W) and the T3 swath (centered at ~ 30N, 70W). The units in the Ta swath appear relatively young and no impact craters could be unambiguously identified. A variety of features which we argue to be cryovolcanic in origin were seen, including extensive flows, paterae, and a circular feature (Ganesa Macula) interpreted as a volcanic dome. We interpret radar-bright braided and sinuous channels and associated deposits to be fluvial in origin. Five distinct units were mapped in Ta, including a dark mottled unit that may represent the presence of surface liquids. The T3 swath displayed many of the same units seen in Ta, except for cryovolcanic features which are absent or indistinct. Among the new features in T3 are a large impact (440 km diameter) basin, a smaller (80 km diameter) crater, and dark lineated streaks, nicknamed "cat scratches" that are thought to be aeolian in origin. The dominant unit in T3 is a bright mottled unit that may contain ubiquitous small (less than 10 km across) topographic features. Groups of material that appear to be hills are more common in the T3 data than Ta. Based on the first two swaths (Ta and T3) we expect significant variations in the types and distribution of geologic features in the T7 and T8 data. The T8 swath will cover the landing site of the Huygens probe, providing a larger geologic context for the high-resolution near-infrared images obtained during the descent of the Huygens probe.

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