Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

Tom Kalbfus · 2016-10-21 08:06:32

Hydrocarbons could be turned into other hydrocarbons which are solid at room temperature.

SpaceNut · 2019-06-24 18:21:43

This might be the first indication of life as 'Bathtub rings' around Titan's lakes might be made of alien crystals

Calliban · 2019-11-01 11:21:57

This is an interesting topic. Anything in contact with solid ground on Titan would lose heat rapidly due to conduction. So you want to stay above, or remain under the ground. The atmosphere of Titan is almost pure nitrogen at a temperature of -180C. At these frigid temperatures, at a pressure of 1.5bar, nitrogen would have a density of about 5kg/m3. A vessel containing ordinary air at standard temperatures, would experience substantial lift. Titan cities could actually be balloons of air, tethered to the surface. The outer surfaces would be lined with aerogel. A nuclear reactor on the ground, would pump hot nitrogen through a central column, maintaining internal temperatures.

SpaceNut · 2019-11-01 19:39:44

A nuclear powered unit will radiate heat to keep it from getting cold and on contact would change solid nitrogen to vapor and hopefully it will not sink out of sight....if it comes in contact with the ground

tahanson43206 · 2019-11-02 06:40:59

For Calliban and SpaceNut ...

Thanks for restarting this topic!

I'm inspired to read the entire series before venturing a question or comment. This was last updated in June of the current Earth year, so I would have read it, and marvel that I need to re-read it to refresh memory of the content.

However, Calliban, I really ** like ** your picture of air filled "balloons" as floating habitats. Artificial gravity would be a nice feature of a hotel on the moon.

(th)

Last edited by tahanson43206 (2019-11-02 19:18:24)

SpaceNut · 2019-11-02 08:47:38

Until the Cassini mission, little was known about Saturn's largest moon Titan, save that it was a Mercury-sized world and that is about to change. The space agency announced Jun 27, 2019; that it will launch a robotic mission to Titan, the largest moon of Saturn, in 2026. The mission, named Dragonfly, will deliver a dronelike spacecraft to the surface.
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa … ns-of-life

Calliban · 2019-11-29 17:41:53

I am inclined to believe that terraforming Titan in not practical. Providing the moon with an atmosphere containing abundant oxygen, would lead to oxidation of surface hydrocarbons. This would be especially rapid if the surface were warmer.

The moon would appear to be uninhabitable without substantial warming. It has a cold, dense nitrogen atmosphere. At typical Titan surface temperature and pressure, nitrogen is close to liquidity point. It would instantly freeze solid any human being on its surface. Even warm clothing would not be enough to prevent this.

qraal · 2019-12-04 22:24:50

Calliban wrote:

I am inclined to believe that terraforming Titan in not practical. Providing the moon with an atmosphere containing abundant oxygen, would lead to oxidation of surface hydrocarbons. This would be especially rapid if the surface were warmer.
The moon would appear to be uninhabitable without substantial warming. It has a cold, dense nitrogen atmosphere. At typical Titan surface temperature and pressure, nitrogen is close to liquidity point. It would instantly freeze solid any human being on its surface. Even warm clothing would not be enough to prevent this.

Insulated clothes should work just fine. As for "instantly freeze solid" that's total bunkum. Nothing is that cold. Human bodies put out 100 W or so of heat, and aren't going to lose it quick enough to freeze instantly.

qraal · 2019-12-04 23:32:35

SpaceNut wrote:

A nuclear powered unit will radiate heat to keep it from getting cold and on contact would change solid nitrogen to vapor and hopefully it will not sink out of sight....if it comes in contact with the ground

The surface of Titan seems to be mostly water ice - at least that's what Huygens saw on the ground it landed on. The dunes seem to be hydrocarbon dust, probably cosmic-ray processed acetylene that has formed aromatics like benzene and such like.

Maybe you mean Triton, which has N2 ice, but its surface temperature is 38 K, so that's expected.

Terraformer · 2019-12-05 02:45:56

qraal wrote:

Calliban wrote:
I am inclined to believe that terraforming Titan in not practical. Providing the moon with an atmosphere containing abundant oxygen, would lead to oxidation of surface hydrocarbons. This would be especially rapid if the surface were warmer.
The moon would appear to be uninhabitable without substantial warming. It has a cold, dense nitrogen atmosphere. At typical Titan surface temperature and pressure, nitrogen is close to liquidity point. It would instantly freeze solid any human being on its surface. Even warm clothing would not be enough to prevent this.
Insulated clothes should work just fine. As for "instantly freeze solid" that's total bunkum. Nothing is that cold. Human bodies put out 100 W or so of heat, and aren't going to lose it quick enough to freeze instantly.

How does the volumetric heat capacity (?) of the Titan atmosphere compare to water near the freezing point? People manage to go diving in the latter, with appropriate clothing on.

qraal · 2019-12-05 03:47:55

To be honest, terraforming Titan seems bit of a fool's errand, since it's liable to turn into an ammoniated swamp if the sub-surface ocean breaks through. Warming the place to ~200 K might allow some more interesting biochemistry, but that presumes there's nothing interesting there already. We'll need to check out the bubble rafts in the polar lakes to make sure we're not destroying some unique cryo-chemistry.

qraal · 2019-12-05 03:55:19

Terraformer wrote:

qraal wrote:
Calliban wrote:
I am inclined to believe that terraforming Titan in not practical. [..]
The moon would appear to be uninhabitable without substantial warming. It has a cold, dense nitrogen atmosphere. At typical Titan surface temperature and pressure, nitrogen is close to liquidity point. It would instantly freeze solid any human being on its surface. Even warm clothing would not be enough to prevent this.
Insulated clothes should work just fine. As for "instantly freeze solid" that's total bunkum. Nothing is that cold. Human bodies put out 100 W or so of heat, and aren't going to lose it quick enough to freeze instantly.
How does the volumetric heat capacity (?) of the Titan atmosphere compare to water near the freezing point? People manage to go diving in the latter, with appropriate clothing on.

Well it's N2 mostly and 5 kg/m^3, with a heat capacity of ~ 1 kJ/kg.K so ~ 5 kJ/m^3.K vs 4.2 MJ/m^3.K for water, so yeah, water's still going to suck up more heat. Of course the temperature differential is higher (about 210 K vs 30 K), but the conductivity of liquid water is still much higher.

People step into cryo-chambers at ~120 K or so, wearing insulated boots, but shirt-free. It's supposed to be therapeutic.

qraal · 2019-12-05 04:05:47

Back in the mid 1970s, one model for Titan's atmosphere was ~21 bars of N2, with a surface temperature of ~200 K. That's about what it'd take to "greenhouse effect" the place. More methane, thanks to photolytic polymerisation, would mean a stronger anti-greenhouse effect (AGE).

Supplying more radiant energy from the Sun, via a concentrating soletta, would puff the atmosphere up. Presently the troposphere finishes where the temperature drops to about ~70 K at the ~0.1 bar level. Increasing the troposphere equilibrium temperature probably won't lead to too much extra loss from the exosphere, because the mesosphere is already a warmish ~170 K. However I don't think we can push as high as Earth-like temperatures without crazy photochemical effects making the smog even more of a problem.

Mars_B4_Moon · 2021-06-07 11:55:51

I'm going to say no on the Terraform thing, but how about setting up a Robotic Production Facility on Asteroids and Moons like Titan, then exporting some kind of water nitrogen and needed products minerals to Mars.

Marvel Disney seem to be doing a movie on 'Titan' not sure if thta's their scifi Planet or the Moon?
https://entertainment.inquirer.net/4117 … -a-big-hit
Will the ‘Eternals’ from the MCU be a big hit?

Humans to Titan?
https://www.humans-to-titan.org/

Colonization of Titan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonization_of_Titan
'Titan has a surface gravity of 0.138 g, slightly less than the Moon. Managing long-term effects of low gravity on human health would therefore be a significant issue for long-term occupation of Titan, more so than on Mars. These effects are still an active field of study. They can include symptoms such as loss of bone density, loss of muscle density, and a weakened immune system. Astronauts in Earth orbit have remained in microgravity for up to a year or more at a time. Effective countermeasures for the negative effects of low gravity are well-established, particularly an aggressive regimen of daily physical exercise or weighted clothing. The variation in the negative effects of low gravity as a function of different levels of low gravity are not known, since all research in this area is restricted to humans in zero gravity. The same goes for the potential effects of low gravity on fetal and pediatric development. It has been hypothesized that children born and raised in low gravity such as on Titan would not be well adapted for life under the higher gravity of Earth.'

Mars_B4_Moon · 2023-03-19 11:11:25

NASA Instrument Bound for Titan Could Reveal Chemistry Leading to Life

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/20 … instrument

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#26 2016-10-21 08:06:32

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#27 2019-06-24 18:21:43

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#28 2019-11-01 11:21:57

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#29 2019-11-01 19:39:44

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#30 2019-11-02 06:40:59

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#31 2019-11-02 08:47:38

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#32 2019-11-29 17:41:53

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#33 2019-12-04 22:24:50

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#34 2019-12-04 23:32:35

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#35 2019-12-05 02:45:56

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#36 2019-12-05 03:47:55

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#37 2019-12-05 03:55:19

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#38 2019-12-05 04:05:47

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#39 2021-06-07 11:55:51

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

#40 2023-03-19 11:11:25

Re: Titan Terraformation - Is it possible?

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