images

Saturn from atop Titan's hydrocarbon haze

by

Walter B. Myers/Novapix

Reference

a-sat99-00313

Date

2009-08-06

Saturn and its rings would be a majestic sight lording over Titan's hydrocarbon haze. The viewpoint is from 50 miles above Titan's surface and three-quarters of a million miles away from Saturn itself. Four of Saturn's smaller satellites can also be seen along the ring plane: left to right are Enceladus, Dione, Tethys and Rhea.
Technically, the orange clouds mark the beginning of Titan's condensate haze, which consists of ethane, methane, nitrogen, and a variety of hydrocarbons known collectively as tholin. These gases and hydrocarbons extend upward another 250 miles, resulting in a bluish, earthlike sky, albeit darker due to Titan's great distance from the Sun. Tholin is created by the interaction of the nitrogen-rich gases with ultraviolet light from the Sun and ultimately precipitates all the way down to Titan's surface. Notwithstanding its flame-like colors, this haze is chilled to minus 330º F.