Kraken Mare: The Largest sea on Titan

Recently, the astronomers have found that the “Kraken Mare” which is the largest sea on the surface of “Titan” is 1,000 feet deep at its centre which provides enough space for any robotic submarine to explore it.

Kraken Mare

• Kraken Mare is the huge water body of liquid ethane and methane.
• It is located near the North Pole of Titan.
• In all, the sea covers an area of around 154,000 square miles.
• The sea equals the size of all five Great Lakes together.
• The water body was discovered by the space probe Cassini.
• It was named after Kraken, who was a legendary sea monster, in the year 2008.
• The water body also contain an island named Mayda Insula.
• The composition, properties, depth and other properties of the Kraken Mare is still unclear. Thus, to study them Titan Saturn System Mission will be launched.

About Titan

• It is the largest moon of Saturn and second-largest natural satellite of the Solar System.
• It is an exceptional moon that comprises of a dense atmosphere.
• Apart from Earth, it is the only body that provides a clear evidence of stable surface liquid.
• The moon was discovered by the Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens in 1955.
• The atmosphere of Titan is largely made up of nitrogen.

Titan Saturn System Mission

The Titan Saturn System Mission has to be launched jointly by NASA and European Space Agency. The proposed cost of the mission is 2.5 billion USD. The mission has been planned for four-year that includes tour of Saturn for two-year, aero sampling of Titan for two months and orbiting of Titan for twenty-month. It comprises of an orbiter and two titan exploration probes namely a hot air balloon and a lander. The hot air balloon will study the clouds of Titan while the lander will go down on methane sea of Titan.