Artificial looking object at Titan Beach

I found this "anomaly" on different radar images of Ligeia Mare, a body filled with liquid
methane which is located on Saturns moon Titan.



The diameter of it is roughly between 10 and 15 kilometers (6,3 - 9,5 miles).

Based on cassinis long time observations, active changes do happen on the shorelines of Ligeia Mare.


A comparision between the radar image and a somehow "corrected" map from Ligeia Mare


I think overall its a striking feature, so what could it be?
If its a impact crater or a caldera why is it corrected on the map?

Source Links

photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov...
photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov...

en.wikipedia.org...

a reply to: MeanMinistry

What did you find artificial about this impact crater , and what's different about tides ? I mean that's what I think you see in the picture...

Although I think Titan is a difficult moon to observe, because of it's thick atmosphere.

But , nevertheless interesting enough to put a rover over there .

a reply to: 0bserver1

We already did. The voyagers flew by, one of them was diverted from the rest of the planets just to get us a pic. Hundred million dollar pics. What a waste. Another probe is going to tell us nothing less expensive than, what….

Its a very cold, lifeless, ice covered rock. Like most other cold lifeless ice covered rocks out there. …eeh, ahh, ooh, look, its got a sightly different mix of volatiles and craters.

I say spend the money exploring space with better space based telescopes., not one shot expensive fly by photos of dead worthless real estate.

But I don't think they are imaging every body in the solar system to find that out. They are looking for something else. Without admitting to the possibility, they are exploring every nook and cranny surrounding our star to find the traces of how we get here. Up until then they will claim its exploration to find water, minerals and "life".

a reply to: intrptr

There a many, many different things you can do with a probe that you can't do with a telescope.

You also will always get better images with a camera nearby than you will with a telescope.

A probe can either fly by, park itself in orbit, or even land on a body it is investigating and be dedicated to the science of that body.
A telescope, even space based, is usually not dedicated to any one body, and is used by many different scientist, who's time must be allotted, and is normally very short, as compared to a probes time.

What is under the ice of Europa? A probe might be able to tell us, a telescope never will.

Saturn's moon Enceladus emits gas jets. While a big enough telescope might detect them....only a probe can fly through them and sample them.

Each has their strengths and each has a weakness. Both are useful.

a reply to: eriktheawful

What is under the ice of Europa?

More ice, slush, methane and ammonia, lifeless brine…

originally posted by: intrptr
a reply to: eriktheawful

What is under the ice of Europa?

More ice, slush, methane and ammonia, lifeless brine…

and don't forget the money pit

originally posted by: intrptr
a reply to: eriktheawful

What is under the ice of Europa?

More ice, slush, methane and ammonia, lifeless brine…

So you've actually been there, drilled down and searched?

Please tell me you're not one of these "space exploration is a waste of money, we could be feeding the whole world with that money!", which is completely NOT true, and is a drop in the bucket as far as government budgets are concerned.

Try getting them to use some of that 800 BILLION or so they use on the military.

I had no idea the private space probe Cynical 1 reached Europa and determined that there is nothing of any interest.

Ok, let's get back to the Titan "anomaly".

I think your best bet would be asking the peeps at the Unmanned Spaceflight Forum, they are usually quite knowlegeable about robotic space missions and interpreting the data.

I have no idea what it is, but it could be a crater, or a geological feature like an eruption of methane from below the seabed.

Just because something is nearly circular doesn't mean it's artificial.

originally posted by: intrptr
a reply to: 0bserver1

We already did. The voyagers flew by, one of them was diverted from the rest of the planets just to get us a pic. Hundred million dollar pics. What a waste. Another probe is going to tell us nothing less expensive than, what….

Its a very cold, lifeless, ice covered rock. Like most other cold lifeless ice covered rocks out there. …eeh, ahh, ooh, look, its got a sightly different mix of volatiles and craters.

I say spend the money exploring space with better space based telescopes., not one shot expensive fly by photos of dead worthless real estate.

But I don't think they are imaging every body in the solar system to find that out. They are looking for something else. Without admitting to the possibility, they are exploring every nook and cranny surrounding our star to find the traces of how we get here. Up until then they will claim its exploration to find water, minerals and "life".

What on earth are you going ob about?

Sure I don't science hard when it comes to chemical make up, space exploration and analyzing digital imagery of moons or planets.

But it looks pretty natural to me?

On a better note, just seeing the original image of Titan is gorgeous and wonderful on it's own! Whatever anomaly or such going on its body, it's a nice lunar specimen imo!

Oh, were it a frozen dock built by laborers made of methane ... or an ancient, ancient edifice poking above the cold seashore.. .rather than the crater left by space debris or a bubble of heroic size blurping up to surface...

but who knows... perhaps slimey blokes of helium2 are square dancing... or round dancing?

a reply to: MeanMinistry

It is interesting, no way to know what it is unless they already know and tell us at some point. Thanks for sharing regardless.

originally posted by: intrptr
But I don't think they are imaging every body in the solar system to find that out. They are looking for something else. Without admitting to the possibility, they are exploring every nook and cranny surrounding our star to find the traces of how we get here. Up until then they will claim its exploration to find water, minerals and "life".

Finding the answers to the latter helps explain the former - it's why we are doing science.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

I had no idea the private space probe Cynical 1 reached Europa and determined that there is nothing of any interest.

From one writer to another, that line is worth stealing.

Bottom line: we don't know how such a structure is created, but most of us would probably find an explanation to be of little use, personally.

That is no reason to NOT do science. Eventually, we will move out into the greater solar system and everything we find there will be "grist for the mill" as we construct our own "solar civilization." I would argue that space science and probe exploration is a very low-cost method of exploring our "home" environment, and -- frankly -- is far more interesting (over the long run) than anything we individual humans can ever hope to accomplish on our own. Nevermind the structural waste of our current loci of attention: tribalism and shucking for rank, here at home.

There are only two possibilities: either we survive our rowdy teen years on earth and eventually move out into the universe, or we don't. I'm voting for the former. The latter already has plenty of support.

Reality is up for grabs. Go long.

originally posted by: 0zzymand0s
That is no reason to NOT do science.

I hear you my friend. I think it is our mission as a species to explore the universe, this is just one of the smaller steps in an overall journey of greater exploration.

a reply to: MeanMinistry

USA likely found WMD's there

originally posted by: crazyewok
USA likely found WMD's there

In that case we need to freedom the hell out of Titan.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

Well, either it is our mission to explore the universe, or die under a heap of refuse and smog... or perhaps ending the whole thing in a nuclear flash after a demagogue's fit of pique ... but a noble sentiment never-the-less!

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

originally posted by: crazyewok
USA likely found WMD's there

In that case we need to freedom the hell out of Titan.

Hell yeah!


Remember Titan hate us for a freedoms