Triton Archives

Examples of Triton's surface morphology, which is dissimilar from the other ice-covered moons in the outer solar system. Extensive smooth planitia (plains) disrupt the cantaloupe terrain. A few small craters are notable in their sparsity. (Image center 23° E, 21° N.) Each panel is a portion of our Triton mosaic, which is in orthographic projection at a scale of 600 m pixel−1. NASA/The Planetary Science Journal

AI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Cryobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Neptune, Status Report, Triton, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Increasing the Usability and Accessibility of Voyager 2 Images of Triton

by Keith CowingJune 25, 2024June 25, 2024

Much of what we know about Neptune’s moon Triton was inferred from the analysis of images returned by the Voyager 2 mission, the only spacecraft to have visited that putative […]

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Neptune, Pluto, Status Report, Triton, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Triton and Pluto: Same Origin But Separated At Birth [Two Possible Ocean Worlds]

by Keith CowingJune 7, 2024June 7, 2024

Assessing the origin of Pluto and Triton has profound implications for the bigger picture of Solar System formation and evolution.

JWST NIRCam albedos of Proteus and Puck compared to the spectra of 2004 EW95 (Plutino) and 2007 VL305 (Neptune Trojan) from JWST Programs 2418 and 2550 respectively. Also shown are Voyager-derived visual geometric albedos, with the Puck albedo selected to be at the same phase angle as the JWST observations (see Figure 6 of Karkoschka (2001) and Table 2 of Karkoschka (2003)). The spectrophotometry for Proteus and Puck closely matches the shape and albedo for the selected objects, both of which have less red/neutral spectral slopes, and perihelia also near 30AU. Higher resolution spectra for Puck and Proteus are needed to reveal surface composition. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Miranda, Neptune, Oberon, Status Report, Titania, Triton, Umbriel, Uranus

JWST Spectrophotometry of the Small Satellites of Uranus and Neptune

by Keith CowingApril 11, 2024April 11, 2024

We use 1.4-4.6 micron multi-band photometry of the small inner Uranian and Neptunian satellites obtained with the James Webb Space Telescope’s near-infrared imager NIRCam to characterize their surface compositions.

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, Triton, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

New Constraints On Triton’s Atmosphere From The 6 October 2022 Stellar Occultation

by Keith CowingMarch 15, 2024March 15, 2024

The atmosphere of Triton was probed directly by observing a ground-based stellar occultation on 6 October 2022. This rare event yielded 23 positive light curves collected from 13 separate observation […]

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Neptune, Status Report, Triton

Constraints On Triton’s Atmospheric Evolution From Occultations: 1989-2022

by Keith CowingFebruary 6, 2024February 6, 2024

Context – Around the year 2000, Triton’s south pole experienced an extreme summer solstice that occurs every about 650 years, when the subsolar latitude reached about 50°. Bracketing this epoch, […]

Elemental ratios providing information on the relative abundance of nitrogen compared to water for Pluto and Triton. This is compared to the solar abundances, abundances observed in Jupiter’s atmosphere, and analogs for solid materials in the PSN. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Icy Worlds, Pluto, Status Report, Triton, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Surface Volatile Composition as Evidence for Hydrothermal Processes Lasting Longer in Triton’s Interior Than Pluto’s

by Keith CowingDecember 12, 2023December 12, 2023

Ocean worlds, or icy bodies in the outer solar system that have or once had subsurface liquid water oceans, are among the most compelling topics of astrobiology. Typically, confirming the […]

Astrochemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Callisto, Enceladus, Europa, Ganymede, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mimas, Pluto, Press Release, Triton

Spectroscopic Detection of Biosignatures in Natural Ice Samples as a Proxy for Icy Moons

by Keith CowingFebruary 15, 2023February 15, 2023

Some of the icy moons of the solar system with a subsurface ocean, such as Europa and Enceladus, are the targets of future space missions that search for potential extraterrestrial […]

Icy Worlds

Triton Haze Analogues: The Role Of Carbon Monoxide In Haze Formation

by Keith CowingDecember 22, 2021

Triton is the largest moon of the Neptune system and possesses a thin nitrogen atmosphere with trace amounts of carbon monoxide and methane, making it of similar composition to that […]

Triton

Neptune's Moon Triton Fosters Rare Icy Union

by Keith CowingMay 23, 2019

Astronomers using the Gemini Observatory explore Neptune’s largest moon Triton and observe, for the first time beyond the lab, an extraordinary union between carbon monoxide and nitrogen ices. The discovery […]

Icy Worlds, Press Release

Compaction and Melt Transport in Ammonia-Rich Ice Shells: Implications for the Evolution of Triton

by Keith CowingNovember 28, 2018

Ammonia, if present in the ice shells of icy satellites, could lower the temperature for the onset of melting to 176 K and create a large temperature range where partial […]

Triton

Increasing the Usability and Accessibility of Voyager 2 Images of Triton

Triton and Pluto: Same Origin But Separated At Birth [Two Possible Ocean Worlds]

JWST Spectrophotometry of the Small Satellites of Uranus and Neptune

New Constraints On Triton’s Atmosphere From The 6 October 2022 Stellar Occultation

Constraints On Triton’s Atmospheric Evolution From Occultations: 1989-2022

Surface Volatile Composition as Evidence for Hydrothermal Processes Lasting Longer in Triton’s Interior Than Pluto’s

Spectroscopic Detection of Biosignatures in Natural Ice Samples as a Proxy for Icy Moons

Triton Haze Analogues: The Role Of Carbon Monoxide In Haze Formation

Neptune's Moon Triton Fosters Rare Icy Union

Compaction and Melt Transport in Ammonia-Rich Ice Shells: Implications for the Evolution of Triton

Tricorder Tech: New Handheld Device Maps Chemical Composition Using Infrared Light

No Statistically Significant Evidence For A Correlation Between Stellar And planetary Composition

Water Planet Recon: How Accurately Can We Measure Earth Ocean’s Deepest Point?

Webb Reveals A Stunning Panorama Of Star Formation

Deep Learning of SHERLOC Raman Spectra For Facilitating Mars Astromaterial Identification