Nerd Alert : Organic Materials Spotted High Above Titan's Surface

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Tuesday April 26, 2005 · 2:15 AM PDT

2005/04/26 · 02:15

First saw this at talk.origins

The Cassini-Huygens team has discovered complex organic molecules in the atmosphere of Titan.

This discovery raises some interesting questions about how these organics may have formed here on Earth. This gives us an opportunity to study formation of these complex molecules in an atmosphere that is not so influenced by the biological processes occurring in our own.

Exciting stuff.

saturn.jpl.nasa.gov :

Organic Materials Spotted High Above Titan's Surface
April 25, 2005
(Source: Jet Propulsion Laboratory)

Cassini's Views of Titan
During its closest flyby of Saturn's moon Titan on April 16, the Cassini spacecraft came within 1,027 kilometers (638 miles) of the moon's surface and found that the outer layer of the thick, hazy atmosphere is brimming with complex hydrocarbons.

Scientists believe that Titan's atmosphere may be a laboratory for studying the organic chemistry that preceded life and provided the building blocks for life on Earth. The role of the upper atmosphere in this organic "factory" of hydrocarbons is very intriguing to scientists, especially given the large number of different hydrocarbons detected by Cassini during the flyby.

Click for larger image

Hydrocarbons containing as many as seven carbon atoms were observed, as well as nitrogen- containing hydrocarbons (nitriles). Titan's atmosphere is composed primarily of nitrogen, followed by methane, the simplest hydrocarbon. The nitrogen and methane are expected to form complex hydrocarbons in a process induced by sunlight or energetic particles from Saturn's magnetosphere. However, it is surprising to find the plethora of complex hydrocarbon molecules in the upper reaches of the atmosphere. Titan is very cold, and complex hydrocarbons would be expected to condense and rain down to the surface.

"Biology on Earth is the primary source of organic production we are familiar with, but the key question is: what is the ultimate source of the organics in the solar system?" added Waite.

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Nerd Alert : Organic Materials Spotted High Above Titan's Surface

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