Observations from the international Cassini spacecraft suggest Saturn’s largest moon may have active or recently active ice volcanoes.
Radar images point to flows on the surface of Titan that could result from volcanoes spewing chilled liquid from the interior, scientists reported last week.
Previous images suggested ice volcanoes existed, and scientists believe they would erupt with ammonia, methane and water instead of lava, which erupts from volcanoes on earth.
PHOTO: AP/NASA
The latest data “not only indicate that volcanoes have been erupting in the recent past, but might even be going on today,” said Cassini scientist Jonathan Lunine of the University of Arizona in Tucson.
Titan is one of the few bodies in the solar system with a significant atmosphere. Scientists believe methane gas breaks up in the atmosphere and forms clouds that rain methane.
The source of methane remains a mystery. Scientists favoring the volcanic theory say methane eruptions from Titan’s interior could explain the moon’s smoggy atmosphere.
Data found bright spots on two regions on Titan. In one of the regions, scientists found evidence of ammonia frost.
But not everyone is sitting on the same side of the fence.
Scientist Jeff Moore of NASA’s Ames Research Center said the results were interesting, but don’t prove anything.
“Something is going on. Exactly what it is, isn’t clear,” Moore said.
The spacecraft has been orbiting Saturn and studying its rings and moons since 2004.(AP)
國際太空船「卡西尼號」傳回的觀測資料顯示,土星的最大衛星上可能有活冰火山或最近才開始活動的冰火山。
科學家上週報告說,雷達圖像指出,泰坦表面的流體可能是火山內部噴射出的冷凍液體。
先前傳回的圖像顯示,泰坦上有冰火山;科學家認為,這些冰火山會噴出氨、甲烷和水,不同於地球上的火山爆發時會噴出熔岩。
土桑市亞利桑納大學的「卡西尼號」任務科學家強納森.盧奈說,最新的資料指出,「這些火山不僅曾在近代多次噴發,甚至連現在也可能爆發」。
泰坦是太陽系中少數擁有濃厚大氣層的天體之一。科學家認為,甲烷氣消散於大氣中後形成雲,再降下甲烷雨。
泰坦上的甲烷從何而來仍是個謎。支持火山理論的科學家們認為,泰坦內部噴出的甲烷可以為這個衛星霧濛濛的大氣提出解釋。
資料顯示,泰坦上有兩個區域呈現亮點。科學家在其中一區發現霜狀氨的證據。
但並非所有人都持相同看法。
美國航太總署艾姆斯研究中心的科學家傑夫.摩爾說,這些結果很有意思,但並不能證明什麼。
摩爾說:「的確有什麼事情發生,但究竟是什麼,還不清楚。」
這艘太空船自從二OO四年起繞行土星,觀察土星環和其衛星。(美聯社�翻譯:袁星塵)
The strongest earthquake to hit Taiwan in 25 years killed at least 16 people and damaged dozens of buildings, but the destruction was largely contained thanks to decades of preparedness work. Taiwan sits on the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of intense seismic activity along the Pacific Rim, and — much like neighboring Japan — has a long history of catastrophic quakes. How does April 3 compare with other recent quakes? The April 3 earthquake, which measured 7.4 on the moment magnitude scale, was felt across Taiwan. It was the most severe since a 7.6 magnitude quake in 1999 killed
Around the time of the Dragon Boat Festival in June, the streets of Taiwan are filled with the delightful aroma of zongzi, a traditional snack made of sticky rice wrapped in leaves. The leaves are folded into a cone and then filled with sticky rice and other ingredients such as braised pork belly, peanuts and salted duck egg yolks. The filled leaves are then tightly tied with kitchen twine and ready for cooking. 每到六月端午時節,街頭巷尾就會飄出粽子的香氣。粽子是將糯米包進粽葉的傳統美食,先將粽葉折成圓錐狀塞入糯米,以及紅燒肉、花生、鹹鴨蛋黃等配料,用棉線綁緊後即可烹煮。 Dragon Boat Festival (n. phr.) 端午節 aroma
Everyone has seen a piece of fruit turn brown after being cut. Have you ever wondered why that happens? It is a common phenomenon that occurs due to a chemical reaction called enzymatic browning. The appearance, flavor and nutritional value of the fruit are all affected by this reaction. Some fruits, such as apples, pears, bananas, avocados and peaches, are more prone to enzymatic browning than others. These fruits contain high levels of an enzyme called polyphenol oxidase, or PPO for short. __1__ This causes a chain of chemical reactions that ultimately transforms the phenolic compounds into
A: Artificial intelligence technology has been causing controversy lately: a student was caught cheating with AI to win the grand prize in an art contest. B: That’s so absurd. Does this mean that AI paints better than humans? A: Maybe. Luckily, the student was later disqualified. B: And more absurdly, it’s becoming more and more popular to use AI technology to “resurrect” people. A: Yeah, some netizens even posted videos featuring the late singer CoCo Lee, who was “resurrected” by them with AI software. A: 人工智慧的爭議不斷,有學生違規使用AI參加美術展,甚至贏得首獎。 B: 真誇張,這是不是代表AI比人類還強大? A: 或許吧,幸好得獎資格被取消。 B: 還有更誇張的︰讓死者重現的「AI復活」技術越來越熱門。 A: 對啊,還有網友製作已故歌后李玟「復活」的影片呢! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)