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Title:
Surface Properties of Titan from Arecibo/GBT Radar Observations
Authors:
Black, Gregory J.; Campbell, D. B.; Carter, L. M.
Affiliation:
AA(Univ. of Virginia), AB(Cornell/NAIC), AC(CEPS/Smithsonian)
Publication:
American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #40, #31.17; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 40, p.449
Publication Date:
09/2008
Origin:
AAS
Bibliographic Code:
2008DPS....40.3117B

Abstract

We review observations of Titan made with the Arecibo Observatory's 13 cm radar system during the past eight oppositions of the Saturn system. Most echoes were received at Arecibo but some were also received with the 100 m Green Bank Telescope to obtain longer tracking times. The locations of the sub-radar locations on Titan range from 26S to 8S latitude and are well distributed in longitude, including Xanadu Regio and many near equatorial dune fields. Echoes from all areas are dominated by a broad diffuse component whose amplitude roughly correlates with the surface's infrared albedo. Most echoes contain a specular component which can be used to estimate the wavelength scale surface roughness and dielectric constant around the sub-radar location. Narrow specular echoes indicative of very smooth, flat surfaces were obtained from locations at various longitudes however appear to be more prevalent toward the lower latitudes covered here. Over Xanadu, as defined by the extent of high infrared albedo, these narrow echoes occur primarily below roughly 18S latitude, possibly indicating differences in surface structure between portions of Xanadu north and south of that latitude. Several of the sub-radar points of these Arecibo tracks coincide with high resolution Cassini SAR imagery swaths over both Xanadu and large dune fields, allowing for a direct comparison. Although dune fields might be expected to be smooth on the wavelength scale, no strong narrow specular echo is seen from any dune field evident in the Cassini imagery.

Portions of this work were supported by the NASA PG&G and Planetary Astronomy programs. Arecibo is part of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center, operated by Cornell University under cooperative agreement with the NSF. The GBT is operated by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, a facility of the NSF operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.

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