Dragonfly Archives

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Icy Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Status Report, Titan, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

THUNDER: A Titan Orbiter Mission Concept for the New Frontiers Program Designed at the JPL Planetary Science Summer School

by Keith CowingMarch 4, 2025

Saturn’s moon Titan is an enigmatic icy world whose surface is constantly modified by its active, Earthlike precipitation system. Here, we propose the Titan’s Hydrocarbons: Uncovering New Dimensions of Evolutionary […]

Distribution of fluvial and lacustrine features on Titan. Most of Titan’s valley networks, lakes, and seas are concentrated at polar latitudes, though valley networks are comparably more globally distributed (Miller et al. 2021). Alluvial fans are primarily found at Titan’s mid-latitudes (Birch et al. 2016). At both poles, Titan’s largest lakes, seas, and paleoseas concentrate on the eastern hemisphere, while most of the smaller lakes are on the opposite hemisphere (Birch et al. 2017). The largest cluster of small lakes are in Titan’s ‘Lake District’, a region elevated above the seas by 100’s of meters. Major regions and features are labeled, along with approximated locations of the Huygens lander and the Dragonfly landing site at Selk Crater. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Saturn, Status Report, Titan

Titan’s Fluvial and Lacustrine Landscapes

by Keith CowingFebruary 5, 2025February 5, 2025

In this chapter we begin with a review of Titan’s fluvial and lacustrine landscapes as observed with Cassini remote sensing data, and what the many discoveries have revealed about Titan’s […]

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Icy Worlds, Press Release, Saturn, Titan, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

How Titan Maintains Its Atmosphere

by Keith CowingJanuary 27, 2025January 27, 2025

Southwest Research Institute partnered with the Carnegie Institution for Science to perform laboratory experiments to better understand how Saturn’s moon Titan can maintain its unique nitrogen-rich atmosphere.

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Titan, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Launch Services Contract Awarded For Dragonfly Astrobiology Mission

by Keith CowingNovember 26, 2024

NASA has selected SpaceX to provide launch services for the Dragonfly mission, a rotorcraft lander mission under NASA’s New Frontiers Program, designed to explore Saturn’s moon Titan. The mission will […]

Structure and parameters of Titan’s cavity -- astro-ph.EP

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Habitable Zones, Magnetic Fields, Electromagnetism, bioelectricity,, Status Report, Titan, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Schumann Resonances As A Tool To Constrain The Depth Of Titan’s Buried Water Ocean

by Keith CowingAugust 1, 2024August 1, 2024

Among the lines of evidence for a buried ocean on Titan is the possible detection, in 2005, by the Permittivity, Wave and Altimetry (PWA) analyzer on board the ESA Huygens […]

Artist’s concept of Dragonfly soaring over the dunes of Saturn’s moon Titan. NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Saturn, Titan

Dragonfly Rotorcraft Astrobiology Mission To Titan Confirmed

by Keith CowingApril 16, 2024April 16, 2024

NASA has confirmed its Dragonfly rotorcraft mission to Saturn’s organic-rich moon Titan. The decision allows the mission to progress to completion of final design, followed by the construction and testing […]

NASA "Astrobiology Fleet" Chart (uncorrected)

Astrobiology (general), Missions & Hardware

Corrected And Updated Version Of NASA’s Astrobiology Fleet Chart (update)

by Keith CowingMarch 25, 2024March 25, 2024

Editor’s note: This Astrobiology Fleet chart was shown by David Grinspoon and Shawn Domagal-Goldman on 22 Mar 2024 at an AAS Goddard Memorial Science Meeting. It is rather incomplete and […]

This poster shows a flattened (Mercator) projection of the Huygens probe's view of Saturn's moon Titan from 10 kilometres altitude. The images that make up this view were taken on Jan. 14, 2005, with the descent imager/spectral radiometer onboard the European Space Agency's Huygens probe. The Huygens probe was delivered to Titan by the Cassini spacecraft, managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. (ESA/NASA/JPL/University of Arizona photo)

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Titan

Titan Is Most Likely Not Habitable

by Keith CowingFebruary 15, 2024February 15, 2024

A study led by Western astrobiologist Catherine Neish shows the subsurface ocean of Titan – the largest moon of Saturn – is most likely a non-habitable environment, meaning any hope […]

An artist’s rendition of Titan’s landscape features a hazy atmosphere, dark dunes, and mirror-smooth lakes and seas that resemble Earth’s. On these bodies of liquid hydrocarbons, new research suggests that the appearance of “magic islands” may be caused by floating organic solids. Credit: NASA/JPL

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Icy Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Saturn, Titan

Titan’s “Magic Islands” Are Likely Honeycombed Hydrocarbon Icebergs

by Keith CowingJanuary 5, 2024January 5, 2024

Titan’s “magic islands” are likely floating chunks of porous, frozen organic solids, a new study finds, pivoting from previous work suggesting they were gas bubbles. The study was published in […]

This modified quadcopter drone can detect and analyze hydrogen sulfide gas while in the air. -- Adapted from Analytical Chemistry, 2023, DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.3c02719 -- ACS

AI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Away Teams & Field Reports, Education and Outreach, Exploration Gear & Tech, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving

Possible Off World AwayTeam Applications: Lab-on-a-drone That Tracks Air Pollution On Earth

by Keith CowingDecember 10, 2023December 10, 2023

Editor’s note: NASA is currently flying the Ingenuity helicopter on Mars as part of the Mars Perseverance rover mission. As of this posting it has flown 67 times and continues […]