Screen LibraryTitan : the earth-like moon /
This is the first book to deal with Titan, one of the most mysterious bodies in the solar system. The largest satellite of the giant planet Saturn, Titan is itself larger than the planet Mercury, and is unique in being the only known moon with a thick atmosphere. In addition, its atmosphere bears a...
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| Main Authors: | |
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| Corporate Authors: | |
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| Published: |
World Scientific Pub. Co.,
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| Publisher Address: | Singapore : |
| Publication Dates: | 1999. |
| Literature type: | eBook |
| Language: | English |
| Series: |
Series on atmospheric, oceanic and planetary physics ;
vol. 1 |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: |
http://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/4142#t=toc |
| Summary: |
This is the first book to deal with Titan, one of the most mysterious bodies in the solar system. The largest satellite of the giant planet Saturn, Titan is itself larger than the planet Mercury, and is unique in being the only known moon with a thick atmosphere. In addition, its atmosphere bears a startling resemblance to the Earth's, but is much colder.The American and European space agencies, NASA and ESA, have recently combined efforts to send a huge robot spacecraft to orbit Saturn and land on Titan. This book provides the background to this, the greatest deep space venture of our time, and sets the scene for what may be found when the spacecraft arrives in 2004. |
| Carrier Form: | 1 online resource (xiv,330pages) : illustrations (some color). |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (pages 307-330). |
| ISBN: |
9789812815187 981281518X |
| CLC: | P185.58 |
| Contents: |
ch. 1. Introduction. 1.1. Early history. 1.2. Titan in mythology. 1.3. The 20th century, before Voyager. 1.4. Titan in the space age. 1.5. Sources and further reading -- ch. 2. Observations of Titan. 2.1. Introduction: space exploration of our Solar System. 2.2. Space missions to the Saturnian system. 2.3. Space observatories. 2.4. Ground-based observatories. 2.5. Sources and further reading -- ch. 3. Atmospheric physics and thermal structure. 3.1. Physical aspects of a substantial atmosphere. 3.2. Atmospheric radiative transfer. 3.3. Atmospheric observations. 3.4. Measurements of Titan's atmospheric temperature. 3.5. Titan's ionosphere. 3.6. Sources and further reading -- ch. 4. Chemistry and composition. 4.1. Stratospheric composition and variations. 4.2. Interpreting molecular abundances. 4.3. Photochemistry. 4.4. Sources and further reading -- ch. 5. Aerosols and condensates. 5.1. Introduction and overview. 5.2. Terrestrial clouds and precipitation. 5.3. Tropospheric condensates: rain without clouds? 5.4. Visible aspects of Titan's haze. 5.5. The albedo of Titan. 5.6. The north-south asymmetry and limb darkening. 5.7. Thermal and dynamical interactions with the haze. 5.8. Size and vertical distribution of the haze particles. 5.9. Observational evidence for condensates. 5.10. Laboratory simulations of haze materials. 5.11. Microphysical models of Titan's haze. 5.12. Discussion and conclusions. 5.13. Sources and further reading. ch. 6. Atmospheric dynamics and meteorology. 6.1. Introduction. 6.2. Some basic atmospheric dynamics. 6.3. Titan's general circulation. 6.4. The zonal "super-rotation" of Titan's stratosphere. 6.5. The weather near the surface. 6.6. Does lightning occur on Titan? 6.7. Sources and further reading -- ch. 7. The surface and interior of Titan. 7.1. Nature of the surface: a question. 7.2. The case for oceans, seas or lakes: radar evidence. 7.3. Surface properties from the near-infrared albedo. 7.4. The near-infrared spectrum of the surface. 7.5. Imaging: continents on the surface? 7.6. Titan's landscape. 7.7. The interior of Titan. 7.8. Sources and further reading -- ch. 8. Titan in the Solar System. 8.1. Introduction. 8.2. Origins and evolution of planetary atmospheres. 8.3. Titan as a member of the Saturnian system. 8.4. Titan compared to Earth. 8.5. Titan and life. 8.6. Titan compared to Venus. 8.7. Titan compared to Triton and Pluto. 8.8. Open questions and lessons learned. 8.9. Sources and further reading -- ch. 9. Cassini and Huygens: orbiting Saturn and landing on Titan. 9.1. Introduction. 9.2. A mission to Saturn. 9.3. Mission highlights. 9.4. The spacecraft and its science payload. 9.5. Scientific objectives: what will it achieve? 9.6. The scientific instruments. 9.7. Interdisciplinary science. 9.8. Being involved: scientists and instrument providers. 9.9. Summing up: reaping the benefits. 9.10. Looking to the future beyond Cassini-Huygens. 9.11. Sources and further reading -- ch. 10. Epilogue. |