Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Nice to see that they're still getting valuable data from the ol' workhorse at Palomar in this day and age of orbiting 'scopes and adaptive optics.


This is an image of Triton, courtesy of Voyager 2 in 1989. Note the dark streaks. Nitrogen ice volcanoes are the theory.

From Calvin J. Hamilton's Solarviews site:

Global color mosaic of Triton, taken in 1989 by Voyager 2 during its flyby of the Neptune system. Color was synthesized by combining high-resolution images taken through orange, violet, and ultraviolet filters; these images were displayed as red, green, and blue images and combined to create this color version. With a radius of 1,350 (839 mi), about 22% smaller than Earth's moon, Triton is by far the largest satellite of Neptune. It is one of only three objects in the Solar System known to have a nitrogen-dominated atmosphere (the others are Earth and Saturn's giant moon, Titan). Triton has the coldest surface known anywhere in the Solar System (38 K, about -391 degrees Fahrenheit); it is so cold that most of Triton's nitrogen is condensed as frost, making it the only satellite in the Solar System known to have a surface made mainly of nitrogen ice. The pinkish deposits constitute a vast south polar cap believed to contain methane ice, which would have reacted under sunlight to form pink or red compounds. The dark streaks overlying these pink ices are believed to be an icy and perhaps carbonaceous dust deposited from huge geyser-like plumes, some of which were found to be active during the Voyager 2 flyby. The bluish-green band visible in this image extends all the way around Triton near the equator; it may consist of relatively fresh nitrogen frost deposits. The greenish areas includes what is called the cantaloupe terrain, whose origin is unknown, and a set of 'cryovolcanic' landscapes apparently produced by icy-cold liquids (now frozen) erupted from Triton's interior.

1 posted on 10/20/2003 2:42:56 AM PDT by petuniasevan
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies ]


To: MozartLover; Joan912; NovemberCharlie; snowfox; Dawgsquat; Vigilantcitizen; theDentist; ...

2 posted on 10/20/2003 2:44:00 AM PDT by petuniasevan (Our workplace low watt bulb: "Nine innings? One team is up 5 times and the other 4! Not fair!")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies ]

To: petuniasevan
Nice to see that they're still getting valuable data from the ol' workhorse at Palomar

It is amazing considering light pollution. Still, even LA has a day now and then when you can see the observatory overlooking downtown from downtown.

5 posted on 10/20/2003 9:09:05 AM PDT by RightWhale (Repeal the Law of the Excluded Middle)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies ]

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article


FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson