Illustration of Dragonfly mission concept for entry, descent landing, surface operations and flight at Titan. Credit: Johns Hopkins/APLSaturn's Titan is the most notable moon in our solar system. It has a substantial atmosphere, and liquid on its surface. Even though it has a similar weather system to Earth's, it rains methane rather than water. Could it be home to some form of life?NASA's Dragonfly mission will launch a rotorcraft-relocatable landing craft to Titan's surface. It will be the first mission to study the surface of Titan.The Dragonfly science team published Science Goals and Objectives of the Dragonfly Titan Rotorcraft relocatable lander on July 19. Jason Barnes, a Dragonfly deputy principal investigator who is also a professor of Physics at the University of Idaho, was the paper's main author.Dragonfly's goals include the search for chemical biosignatures, investigating the moon's active Methane Cycle and exploring prebiotic chemistry that is currently occurring in Titan's atmosphere as well as on its surface.Alex Hayes (associate professor of astronomy at the College of Arts and Sciences and Dragonfly coinvestigator) said that Titan is an explorer's paradise. "The science questions that we have about Titan are broad because we don’t know enough about the surface's actual state, but they are extremely broad," said Alex Hayes. We gained 10 new questions for every question that we had during the Cassini mission to Titan orbit.Cassini orbited Saturn for 13 years. However, Titan's thick methane atmosphere made it difficult to identify materials on Titan's surface. Cassini's radar allowed scientists to penetrate the atmosphere to identify Earth-like morphologic structures including lakes and mountains. However, data couldn't reveal their composition.NASA's Dragonfly mission will launch a rotorcraft-relocatable landing craft to Titan's surface in the middle of 2030s. It will be the first mission ever to explore the surface. Credit: Johns Hopkins/APLHayes also directs the Cornell Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science and Spacecraft Planetary Image Facility.The Huygens probe, which was launched on Titan in 2005 by NASA, was intended to either float on a methane/ethane ocean or land on a solid surface. Because they were unsure if it would survive landing, its science experiments were primarily atmospheric. Dragonfly will be the first mission that explores Titan's surface and identifies its organic-rich surface."What's so thrilling to me is that I've made predictions about the local scale on Titan's surface and how Titan functions as a system," Hayes stated. "And Dragonfly's measurements and images are going to show us how accurate or incorrect they are."Hayes has worked on Titan almost his entire career. He is particularly interested in answering some of Cassini's questions about his area of expertise: surface-atmosphere interactions and planetary surface processes.He stated that his primary scientific interests lie in understanding Titan, an Earth-like complex world, and the processes driving its evolution. This includes everything, from the interactions of the methane cycle with the atmosphere and surface to the routing and possible exchange with the interior.Hayes will also contribute significant expertise to another area: operational experience from Mars Rover missions.Artist's impression: Dragonfly flying over Titan. Credit: Johns Hopkins/APLHayes stated that the Dragonfly mission is a result of Cornell's extensive history and Cassini science. It combines these two elements by exploring Titan using a relocatable, moving craft.Cornell astronomers currently participate in the Mars Science Laboratory, Mars 2020 missions and also led the Mars Exploration Rovers mission. Hayes stated that the lessons from the Mars rovers are being transferred to Titan.Dragonfly will spend one full Titan day, which is equivalent to 16 Earth days, in one place conducting science experiments and observations. Then it will fly to another location. Hayes stated that the science team will have to decide what the spacecraft will do next, based on the lessons learned from the previous location. This is exactly what Mars rovers have done for decades.Titan's low gravity, which is about one-seventh that of Earth's, and its thick atmosphere (4 times denser than Earth) make it an ideal location for an aerial vehicle. The atmosphere is quiet and has lighter winds than Earth. This makes it even more appealing. While Dragonfly doesn't expect rain, Hayes pointed out that no one knows what the local weather patterns are on Titanyet.Hayes is keenly interested in prebiotic chemistry and many of the scientific questions raised by the group are related to this area. Hayes is excited to see where Titan's prebiotic chemistry has taken him. Titan's atmosphere could be an analog for what occurred on early Earth.The search for chemical biosignatures by Dragonfly will be extensive. They will be looking at Titan's habitability and other potential chemical biosignatures. This includes both water-based life as well as those that might use liquid hydrocarbons to dissolve, as well as past or current Titanian life.Explore more Recipes are different, but Saturn's moon Titan contains ingredients for lifeFurther information: Jason W. Barnes and colleagues, Science Goals & Objectives for Dragonfly Titan Rotorcraft Reslocatable Lander. The Planetary Science Journal (2021). Information about the Journal: The Planetary Science Journal Jason W. Barnes and co, Science Goals & Objectives for Dragonfly Titan Rotorcraft Reslocatable Lander (2021). DOI: 10.3847/PSJ/abfdcf
