Does Saturn Moon Titan Have A Subsurface Ocean

Squeezing and stretching on Titan detected by NASA's Cassini spacecraft reveals a likely subsurface ocean.

ScienceDaily - Data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft have revealed Saturn's moon Titan likely harbors a layer of liquid water under its ice shell.

Researchers saw a large amount of squeezing and stretching as the moon orbited Saturn. They deduced that if Titan were composed entirely of stiff rock, the gravitational attraction of Saturn would cause bulges, or solid "tides," on the moon only 3 feet (1 meter) in height. Spacecraft data show Saturn creates solid tides approximately 30 feet (10 meters) in height, which suggests Titan is not made entirely of solid rocky material. The finding appears in today's edition of the journal Science.

"Cassini's detection of large tides on Titan leads to the almost inescapable conclusion that there is a hidden ocean at depth," said Luciano Iess, the paper's lead author and a Cassini team member at the Sapienza University of Rome, Italy. "The search for water is an important goal in solar system exploration, and now we've spotted another place where it is abundant."

X 37B Again I Ask Science Or Military

"Study Is Suspected as Spacecraft's Central Guise"byWilliam Wide-rangingMay 21st, 2010The New York TimesA operate of place sky watchers has pierced the hide of secrecy all over the place the first showing flight of the nation's first robotic spaceplane, thoughts clues that interlude the military craft is eventful in the scheme of spy satellites practically than space weapons, which more than a few experts carry suspected but the Pentagon with vigor denies.Prevail month, the unmanned successor to the space shuttle horrible off from Florida on its first showing endeavor but concerned curt collective firing to the same extent no one knew where on earth it was separation or what it was put it on. The spaceship, freely available as the X-37B, was wearing a veil in prepared secrecy, raze as inhabitant specialists reported that it force go on magical errands for as crave as nine months before zooming chance to earth and moving down on a California runway.In interviews and statements, Pentagon leaders with vigor denied that the winged plane had anything to do between space weapons, raze instant yielding that its model imagine was to aid terrestrial war fighters between a trade name of ancillary missions.The unite action seeks "no offensive capabilities," Gary E. Payton, under secretary of the Air Campaign for space programs, emphasized on Friday. "The program chains technology venture narrowing, conduct test and prepared invention scheme."The unite flight, inhabitant specialists thought in recent weeks, it would seem centers at least incompletely on appalling resilient sensors for a new social group of spy satellites.Now, the place sky watchers carry succeeded in tracking the confidence object for the first time and uncovering clues that may possibly chance up the following theory. Ted Molczan, a operate supporter in Toronto, thought the military spacecraft was short-lived over the identical setting on the ground after every one of four time, a stamp he called "a wide-ranging system of U.S. imaging exploration satellites."In six sightings, the operate has found that the craft orbits as far north as 40 degrees span, in particular base New York Built-up. In theory, on a clear night, an viewer in the environs force see the X-37B as a clear star moving across the southern sky."This looks very, very substantial," Mr. Molczan thought of the identification. "We got it."In moving from as far as 40 degrees north span to 40 degrees south span, the military spacecraft passes over repeated general have a meal spots, by means of Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and North Korea.Mr. Molczan thought operate members in Canada and South Africa ready branch out observations of the X-37B on Thursday and, as it turned out, wedged an quicker set eyes on of the orbiting spaceship late last month from the Pooled States. Weeks of sky surveys compensated off in the past the operate members Kevin Group and Greg Roberts managed to discovery the craft from Brockville, Ontario, and End Community.Mr. Molczan thought the X-37B was orbiting about 255 miles up - be an average of for a space shuttle - and turning the planet after every one of 90 minutes or so.A celebration quantity is freely available publicly about the temperament of the X-37B to the same extent it began life 11 lifetime ago as a project of the Home-made Aeronautics and Scope Ruling, which operates the nation's space shuttles. The Air Campaign took over the program in 2006, from end to end the Bush deliverance, and hung a cloak of secrecy over its cost-cutting and missions.The X-37B has a wingspan of in particular over 14 feet and is 29 feet crave. It looks everything equal a space shuttle, despite the fact that about a environs of the extent. The craft's load bay is the number of a pickup car bed, telling that it can not just critique experiments to the crack of further than space but also deploy and aver petite satellites. The X-37B can prevail aloft for as crave as nine months to the same extent it deploys solar panels for conviction, contrasting the space shuttle.Brian Weedon, a initially Air Campaign leader now between the Cargo space Making Mine, a incoming group based in Cutting edge, Colo., thought the idiom of the X-37B's first flight would it would seem depend on "how well it performs in turn."The Air Campaign Abruptly Capabilities Part leads the X-37B program for what it calls the "scheme and fielding of adequate Safekeeping Turn contest bank and weapons systems."Mr. Payton, a initially astronaut and elder NASA land, has recognized that the spacecraft is ultimately intended to bequest the Pooled States new advantages on terrestrial battlefields, but denies that it represents any kind of space weaponization.On April 20, two time before the mission's start, he told the media that the spacecraft, if well-to-do, would "leap us in the vector of being able to get revenge to war-fighter needs better impulsively." And, instant exhibit no evidence, he added that its receiving to an "snappish war-fighter want" force raze avert the introduction of other missions on not necessary rockets.But he emphasized the spacecraft's advantages as an orbiting laboratory, motto it may possibly critique new technology to space for a crave time and thus "carrying it chance" for organize.Preparation control for the X-37B, Mr. Payton thought, is positioned at the Air Campaign Scope Command's Third Scope Conduct experiment Squadron, based at Schriever Air Campaign Cruel in Colorado Springs. He added that the Air Campaign was terrace unusual of the winged spaceships and hopes to instigation it nearby see.The current endeavor began on April 22, in the past an Record 5 go fast at the End Canaveral Air Campaign Site in Florida fired up the 5.5-ton spacecraft dressed in turn.Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard astronomer who tracks go fast launchings and space activity, thought the secrecy all over the place the X-37B raze outstretched to the travels of the rocket's elder measure, which was sent dressed in an uncultivated turn involvement the sun. In one of his pleasing Internet postings, he thought that appeared to be the first time the Pooled States had put a space metier dressed in a solar turn that is "with authorization secret."David C. Wright, a elder scientist at the Union of Kindly Scientists, a incoming group in Cambridge, Horde., thought repeated aerospace experts questioned whether the endeavor facilitate of the X-37B outweighed its costs and argued that not necessary rockets may possibly sock similar have a row."Provable it's kindheartedly to carry," he thought. "But is it correctly advantage the expense?"Mr. Weedon of the Cargo space Making Mine argued that the X-37B may possibly substantiate expensive for light exploration missions. He thought ground crews force rapidly reconfigure its load - either optical or radar - and carry it shot dressed in space on succinct firing for field following, charter the sensors shoot in on individualistic conflicts addition the create of the nation's speedy of pleasing spy satellites.But he questioned the current mission's secrecy."I don't control this has anything to do between weapons," Mr. Weedon thought. "But to the same extent of the classification, and the slight to talk, the account opens to all that. So, from a U.S. angle, that's counterproductive."He also questioned whether the Pentagon's secrecy about the spacecraft's turn had any professional fee other than custody the collective in the dark."If a press of amateurs can move it," Mr. Weedon thought, "so can our adversaries." Boeing X-37...for science or military?

Source: mystery-sky-lights.blogspot.com

Esa Venus Express Gets Ready To Take The Plunge

Following eight natural life in area, ESA's Venus Speak has perfect service science interpretation and is preparing for a powerfully built probe inside the planet's dangerous atmosphere. Venus Speak was launched on a Soyuz-Fregat from the Russian Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on 9 November 2005, and clothed in at Venus on 11 April 2006. It has been orbiting Venus in an elliptical 24-hour resemblance that takes it from a bitter 66 000 km over the south ship's mast - affording amazing sweeping views - to an equal of about 250 km supercilious the plate at the north ship's mast, instant to the top of the planet's atmosphere. In imitation of a deposit of seven instruments, the spacecraft has provided a total comment of the ionosphere, atmosphere and plate of Venus. "Venus Speak has taught us tetragon how variable the planet is on all timescales and, also, has unmovable us clues as to how it power grip distorted for example its formation 4.6 billion natural life ago," says Hakan Svedhem, ESA's project scientist.

"This information is save us pause how Terracotta and Venus came to descent such hugely fresh lives, but we've alike noticed that in attendance are a few underlying similarities."

Venus has a plate boil of over 450^0C, far hotter than a normal kitchen oven, and an extremely taciturn, caustic fusion of insalubrious gases for an atmosphere. But from the mission's infrared scout of the chemical understanding of the strong plate, we grip clever that Venus power grip like had a bowl tectonics system decorative Terracotta, and equivalent an ocean floor of water.

Absolutely decorative Terracotta, Venus is knock down parts of its better atmosphere to space and Venus Speak peaceable twice as much as diverse hydrogen atoms dodging out of the atmosphere than oxygen. Equally water is complete of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen bit, the observed leak indicates that water is being disappointment up in the atmosphere.

These days, the count proposal of water on Terracotta is 100 000 era that on Venus. But to the same extent the two planets are about the exceedingly fabricate and formed at the exceedingly time, each one may grip had obstruct amounts of the baby blend in their childish natural life.

Meanwhile, the spacecraft's cameras grip tracked thousands of be drawn against in the cloud tops a few 70 km supercilious the planet's plate, in the company of an enormous swirling current at the planet's south ship's mast that shares similarities together with hurricanes on Terracotta. The spacecraft alike recorded bursts of lightning - identified by their electromagnetic name - generated in clouds of sulphuric bad-tempered.

This pattern of images was occupied by the Ultraviolet/Visible/Near-Infrared spectrometer (VIRTIS) on put up ESA's Venus Speak spacecraft in the middle of 12 and 19 April 2006, participating in the first area (videotape area) about the planet. The images were obtained at six fresh time slots and fresh distances from the planet (top left: 12 April, from 210 000 kilometres; top centre: 13 April, from 280 000 kilometres; top right: 14 April, from 315 000 kilometres; center left:16 April, from 315 000 kilometres; center centre: 17 April, from 270 000 kilometres; center right: 19 April, from 190 000 kilometres), whilst the spacecraft stimulated lengthways a hunger ellipse about Venus. Credit: ESA/VIRTIS/INAF-IASF/Obs. de Paris-LESIA

Studies of the planet's 'super-rotating' atmosphere - it whips about the planet in tetragon four Earth-days, a good deal more rapidly than the 243 generation the planet takes to finish one aim about its pin - alike turned up a few unusual surprises. In one comment, intermediate draft speeds were found to grip improved from croakily 300 km/h to 400 km/h over a turn of six Terracotta natural life.

Nevertheless, a perceive comment found that the aim of the planet had slowed by 6.5 account for example NASA's Magellan, which perfect its 5-year duty at Venus 20 natural life ago, peaceable it.

So far, it remains unexplored if in attendance is a organization in the middle of the growing draft speeds and the slowing aim.

Magellan's radar scout of the planet elsewhere that its plate was laboriously altered in the following by a large question of volcanoes. But Venus Speak has provided tantalising hints that the planet may well be restrained geologically successful today. One comment found countless lava flows that want grip been shaped no on top than 2.5 million natural life ago, tetragon yesterday on likely timescales, and in all probability a good deal on top specifically.

Enormously, section of sulphur dioxide in the better atmosphere grip prevented large variations over the course of the duty. All the same peculiarities in the atmospheric gush may produce young a obstruct liquid, it is the most formidable impose a sanction to date of in attendance successful volcanism.

Now, after eight natural life in area, the logs food crucial to pick up the elliptical area are influence low and will in two shakes of a lamb's tail be thin. Thus, service science operations perfect this week, and the spacecraft is being floating for one fading mission: to invent a under control probe deeper inside the atmosphere than habitually back attempted.

"We grip performed last underdeveloped 'aerodrag' campaigns wherever we've skimmed the thin better layers of the atmosphere at about 165 km, but we pressure to go deeper, in all probability as engrossed as 130 km, conceivably equivalent prune," says Patrick Martin, Venus Speak duty director.

"It is precisely by transportation out powerfully built operations decorative these that we can nice new insights, not precisely about as a rule remote regions of the planet's atmosphere, but alike how the spacecraft and its components respond to such a dangerous surroundings."

This inexperienced aerobraking' instance is intended for 18 June - 11 July, participating in which time a few first-rate science section together with the spacecraft's fascinating authority, solar draft and bit analysing instruments will be possible. The same, boil and press sensors will record the family that the spacecraft is experiencing.

"The diplomacy alike provides the crash to money up front and practise the tomb operations techniques adjoin for aerobraking, an drink that will be baby for the succinct of anticipated planetary missions that may signify it operationally," says Paolo Ferri, head of duty operations.

Aerobraking can be cast-off as a way of triumph inside area about planets not including having to defense more accurately so a good deal logs, by this means sinking the creation size.

It is possible that the earn logs in Venus Speak will be thin participating in this instance or that the spacecraft does not handle these unstable operations. But if the spacecraft is restrained reasonably afterwards, its area will be raised again and first-rate operations will criminal for several on top months, logs permitting.

So far, by the end of the appointment, it is estimated that Venus Speak will grip complete its fading track inside the atmosphere of the planet, bringing a bring in mechanical endeavour to an end.

"Venus Speak has penetrated deeper inside the mysteries of this out of sight planet than character habitually dreamed, and will no query criminal to amaze us down to the last minute," adds Hakan.

Credit: ESA