Saturn’s largest moon called Titan has hydrocarbon seas, where a mysterious island was recently observed by the Cassini space probe. The island-like feature appeared in Titan’s second largest sea called Ligeia Mare, near the moon’s north pole, before disappearing from view when the probe passed the same spot a couple weeks later.
Saturn’s largest moon called Titan has hydrocarbon seas, where a mysterious island was recently observed by the Cassini space probe.
The island-like feature appeared in Titan’s second largest sea called Ligeia Mare, near the moon’s north pole, before disappearing from view when the probe passed the same spot a couple weeks later.
Jason Hofgartner, from Cornell University in New York City, is quoted as saying: “This discovery tells us that the liquids in Titan's northern hemisphere are not simply stagnant and unchanging, but rather that changes do occur. We don't know precisely what caused this 'magic island' to appear, but we'd like to study it further.”
Experts have offered several possible explanations for the feature’s appearance including waves, gas that bubbled up to reach the surface, or it might have even been an iceberg.
Titan is unique because of the similarities it has to our own planet.
For example, it has an atmosphere with wind and rain similar to Earth, except the precipitation is composed of liquid methane, that forms natural features like dunes, lakes, and rivers.
It also has the only other known bodies of stable surface liquid, besides the oceans and lakes found on Earth.