Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar

Thousands of longitudinal dunes have recently been discovered by the Titan Radar Mapper on the surface of Titan. These are found mainly within ±30° of the equator in optically-, near-infrared-, and radar-dark regions, indicating a strong proportion of organics, and cover well over 5% of Titan's...

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Main Authors: Radebaugh, J., Lorenz, R., Lunine, J., Wall, S., Boubin, G., Reffet, E., Kirk, R., Lopes, R., Stofan, E., Soderblom, L., Allison, M., Janssen, M., Paillou, P., Callahan, P., Spencer, Christopher, Cassini Radar Team
Format: Journal Article
Published: Academic Press 2008
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24614
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author Radebaugh, J.
Lorenz, R.
Lunine, J.
Wall, S.
Boubin, G.
Reffet, E.
Kirk, R.
Lopes, R.
Stofan, E.
Soderblom, L.
Allison, M.
Janssen, M.
Paillou, P.
Callahan, P.
Spencer, Christopher
Cassini Radar Team
author_facet Radebaugh, J.
Lorenz, R.
Lunine, J.
Wall, S.
Boubin, G.
Reffet, E.
Kirk, R.
Lopes, R.
Stofan, E.
Soderblom, L.
Allison, M.
Janssen, M.
Paillou, P.
Callahan, P.
Spencer, Christopher
Cassini Radar Team
author_sort Radebaugh, J.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Thousands of longitudinal dunes have recently been discovered by the Titan Radar Mapper on the surface of Titan. These are found mainly within ±30° of the equator in optically-, near-infrared-, and radar-dark regions, indicating a strong proportion of organics, and cover well over 5% of Titan's surface. Their longitudinal duneform, interactions with topography, and correlation with other aeolian forms indicate a single, dominant wind direction aligned with the dune axis plus lesser, off-axis or seasonally alternating winds. Global compilations of dune orientations reveal the mean wind direction is dominantly eastwards, with regional and local variations where winds are diverted around topographically high features, such as mountain blocks or broad landforms. Global winds may carry sediments from high latitude regions to equatorial regions, where relatively drier conditions prevail, and the particles are reworked into dunes, perhaps on timescales of thousands to tens of thousands of years. On Titan, adequate sediment supply, sufficient wind, and the absence of sediment carriage and trapping by fluids are the dominant factors in the presence of dunes.
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publishDate 2008
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-246142017-09-13T15:10:45Z Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar Radebaugh, J. Lorenz, R. Lunine, J. Wall, S. Boubin, G. Reffet, E. Kirk, R. Lopes, R. Stofan, E. Soderblom, L. Allison, M. Janssen, M. Paillou, P. Callahan, P. Spencer, Christopher Cassini Radar Team Saturn Titan surfaces satellites Satellites Thousands of longitudinal dunes have recently been discovered by the Titan Radar Mapper on the surface of Titan. These are found mainly within ±30° of the equator in optically-, near-infrared-, and radar-dark regions, indicating a strong proportion of organics, and cover well over 5% of Titan's surface. Their longitudinal duneform, interactions with topography, and correlation with other aeolian forms indicate a single, dominant wind direction aligned with the dune axis plus lesser, off-axis or seasonally alternating winds. Global compilations of dune orientations reveal the mean wind direction is dominantly eastwards, with regional and local variations where winds are diverted around topographically high features, such as mountain blocks or broad landforms. Global winds may carry sediments from high latitude regions to equatorial regions, where relatively drier conditions prevail, and the particles are reworked into dunes, perhaps on timescales of thousands to tens of thousands of years. On Titan, adequate sediment supply, sufficient wind, and the absence of sediment carriage and trapping by fluids are the dominant factors in the presence of dunes. 2008 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24614 10.1016/j.icarus.2007.10.015 Academic Press restricted
spellingShingle Saturn
Titan
surfaces
satellites
Satellites
Radebaugh, J.
Lorenz, R.
Lunine, J.
Wall, S.
Boubin, G.
Reffet, E.
Kirk, R.
Lopes, R.
Stofan, E.
Soderblom, L.
Allison, M.
Janssen, M.
Paillou, P.
Callahan, P.
Spencer, Christopher
Cassini Radar Team
Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar
title Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar
title_full Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar
title_fullStr Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar
title_full_unstemmed Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar
title_short Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar
title_sort dunes on titan observed by cassini radar
topic Saturn
Titan
surfaces
satellites
Satellites
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24614