An artistic rendering of Kraken Mare, the large liquid methane sea on Saturn’s moon Titan. Astronomers estimate Titan’s largest sea is 1,000 feet deep
January 20, 2021
Far below the gaseous atmospheric shroud on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, lies Kraken Mare, a sea of liquid methane. Cornell astronomers have estimated that sea to be at least 1,000 feet deep near its center – enough room for a potential robotic submarine to explore.
After sifting through data from one of the final Titan flybys of the Cassini mission, the researchers detailed their findings in “The Bathymetry of Moray Sinus at Titan’s Kraken Mare,” which published Dec. 4, 2020, in the Journal of Geophysical Research.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill
NASA’s Juno mission captured these elaborate atmospheric jets in Jupiter’s northern mid-latitude region on April 10, 2020, during the spacecraft’s 26th flyby. NASA extends Cornell-involved Juno, InSight missions
January 15, 2021
NASA’s Juno spacecraft – currently orbiting Jupiter, flying close approaches to the planet and then out into the realm of the Jovian moons – and the InSight lander, now perched in Mars’ equatorial region, have both received mission extensions, the space agency announced Jan. 8. Cornell astronomers serve key roles on both projects.
An independent review panel composed of science, operations and mission management experts said the Juno and InSight missions have “produced exceptional science,” and have recommended that the space agency continue both missions, according to the announcement from NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.