Video: Cassini radar images dunes on Saturn’s moon Titan

The Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn has returned radar imagery of dunes on the moon Titan, the only moon in our solar system to have an atmosphere. Radar allows a view of what is hidden by the atmospheric haze: Titan’s Dunes and Other Features Emerge in New Images – Cassini/NASA

xanaduannexontitanThis synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) image was obtained by
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft on July 25, 2016, during its “T-121”
pass over Titan’s southern latitudes.

The video shows some of the radar imagery.

This video focuses on Shangri-la, a large, dark area on Titan filled with dunes. The long, linear dunes are thought to be comprised of grains derived from hydrocarbons that have settled out of Titan’s atmosphere. Cassini has shown that dunes of this sort encircle most of Titan’s equator. Scientists can use the dunes to learn about winds, the sands they’re composed of, and highs and lows in the landscape.

The radar image was obtained by the Cassini Synthetic Aperture radar (SAR) on July 25, 2016, during the mission’s 122nd targeted Titan encounter.