Is life Possible on Titan, the largest moon of Saturn?
For years, scientists have been looking out for the possibility of life beyond the Earth in our solar system. One such exciting place with possibilities has been Titan, the largest moon of Saturn. This moon was formed 4.5 billion years ago and discovered by Christiaan Huygens, a Dutch Astronomer, in the 17th century.
Titan, it turns out, is even bigger than planet Mercury. Well, not only that, it is also the only moon to have clouds, a dense atmosphere, and liquid on its surface! With so many interesting facts, let’s find out if life can exist on this moon, that sounds more like a planet.
The millennial methane showers
Similar to our Earth, Titan's atmosphere is majorly covered by nitrogen (95%). However, a small amount is methane. You will be surprised to know that Titan and Earth are the only two bodies in our solar system where it rains! However, instead of water, you will experience methane rains here. Since Titan is far from the sun, it is much colder there, with an average temperature around−179°C. At this temperature, water is frozen, and hydrocarbons such as methane are found in liquid. Thankfully, it rains only once in nearly 1000 years on Titan!
Rivers and lakes beyond Earth!
You must be well aware of the water cycle system on Earth. Well, just like that, Titan also has its liquid recycling mechanism. Although there is no other place in the solar system that has an Earth-like liquid activity on its surface, methane is part of this process on Titan instead of water. This means that rain fills up rivers and lakes from which the liquid evaporates again and forms clouds.
Life on Titan: Will it be similar to that of Earth?
Titan is one of the few places in our solar system with a potentially habitable environment. But you must be thinking, how is this possible? Apart from having an atmosphere filled with nitrogen and methane, there is also an underground ocean of water on Titan! This liquid is most likely mixed with ammonia and some salts. Surprised? Well, in 2005, a space probe by the European Space Agency measured radio signals suggesting an ocean's presence. According to these signals, the water body is 55-80 km below the ground of Titan. Not only this, but the surface of Titan also has lakes and rivers filled with methane and ethane. Because of the sun’s ultraviolet rays and particles in Saturn's magnetic field, methane and nitrogen in Titan’s atmosphere are chemically split. When these chemicals recombine, they form substances similar to those essential to life on Earth.
As we can see, Titan has a unique environment compared to other moons in our solar system. So, if there is a possibility for life on Titan, it might be of two types. One can develop from the underground waterbody that might be similar to something we know on Earth. Another form might be from the methane and ethane lakes and rivers, which are completely different from Earth's life!