Astrologers and scientists in Europe controlling the probe which took pictures of the only moon in the solar system which has an atmosphere – Titan, roared in happiness as they found a coastline amdde by an oily ocean on Titan!
The Huygens space craft has sent back the first images of Saturn’s moon Titan, showing what appears to be a shoreline of an oily ocean.
One stunning black and white image reveals what seem to be drainage channels on a land surface leading out into a dark body of liquid.
Another shows a flat surface that is apparently strewn with boulders.
Scientists said Huygens captured over 300 images as it dived through the moon’s atmosphere.
Speaking about the picture of an apparent shoreline, John Zarnecki, principal investigator for the Surface Science Package (SSP) on Huygens said: “If it’s not a sea, it could be a lake of tar. And did one see waves?”
The European Space Agency has released images captured from altitudes of 16.2km, 8km and one on the surface.
“The pictures just got better after we passed through the haze,” said Marty Tomasko, who leads the probe’s imaging team.
He added that the images would still need to be cleaned up and that scientists would have to study the pictures closely to interpret them.
“We may be seeing a coastline, but that does not necessarily mean it’s liquid now,” mission scientist Andrew Ball, of the Open University told the BBC News website.
“It looks like something has flowed at some time to make those channels. But is it something that has solidified?”
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