https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/saturn-moo...d-twisters
EXCERPT: Does Saturn's largest moon contain swarms of dry whirlwinds similar to Earth and Mars? There's a devil of a chance! A new research paper led by planetary scientist Brian Jackson of Boise State University in Idaho and published in the online journal AGU suggests that theoretical conditions for swirling dust‐laden plumes are perfect, and might significantly contribute to the distribution of dust in Titan's atmosphere.
[...] Titan is the only moon in our solar system with a defined atmosphere, which is mostly made up of nitrogen. It also displays active hydrology in Earth‐like river canyons, hard-edged gorges, and even small lakes. ... "Titan's atmosphere is one and a half times the density of our planet's air and doesn't seem to host huge, gusty winds. ... When we plug the numbers in for how much dust the dust devil ought to lift based on the wind speeds we see, they seem to be able to lift more dust than we would expect," Jackson added. "There may be some other mechanism which is helping them pull this dust — or the equations are just wrong."
The launch of NASA's Dragonfly mission six years from now might provide some clearer answers to scientists when the probe finally touches down on Titan circa 2034, and records evidence of these hypothetical twisters terrorizing the surface... (MORE - details)
https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/xn3-0a19sC8
EXCERPT: Does Saturn's largest moon contain swarms of dry whirlwinds similar to Earth and Mars? There's a devil of a chance! A new research paper led by planetary scientist Brian Jackson of Boise State University in Idaho and published in the online journal AGU suggests that theoretical conditions for swirling dust‐laden plumes are perfect, and might significantly contribute to the distribution of dust in Titan's atmosphere.
[...] Titan is the only moon in our solar system with a defined atmosphere, which is mostly made up of nitrogen. It also displays active hydrology in Earth‐like river canyons, hard-edged gorges, and even small lakes. ... "Titan's atmosphere is one and a half times the density of our planet's air and doesn't seem to host huge, gusty winds. ... When we plug the numbers in for how much dust the dust devil ought to lift based on the wind speeds we see, they seem to be able to lift more dust than we would expect," Jackson added. "There may be some other mechanism which is helping them pull this dust — or the equations are just wrong."
The launch of NASA's Dragonfly mission six years from now might provide some clearer answers to scientists when the probe finally touches down on Titan circa 2034, and records evidence of these hypothetical twisters terrorizing the surface... (MORE - details)