What is #37: Titan?

Having recently discussed the fourth Galilean moon, Ganymede, in this series, it makes sense to continue with some other moons in the Solar System as there are a ton of very cool moons out there! Jupiter does not own all of the cool moons. Far from it. Another very cool moon in the Solar System, Titan, orbits Saturn.

 

Titan - NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute [Public domain]

Titan is the largest moon orbiting Saturn and the second largest moon in the Solar System, behind Ganymede. You can't see the surface of Titan from above the atmosphere since Titan has a very thick atmosphere that consists of primarily nitrogen. This is similar to Earth's atmosphere, but the non-nitrogen components differ drastically from Earth. Titan does not have a breathable atmosphere for humans.

We do have surface images of Titan thanks to the Cassini mission that arrived at Saturn in 2004 and dropped a probe, Huygens, onto the surface of Titan. The surface has craters, rocky features, and lakes of hydrocarbons (but not lakes of water).

Shoreline of a hydrocarbon lake on Titan. - NASA/JPL/ESA/University of Arizona [Public domain]

Very cool! Titan may not be the largest moon, but it may very well be the most interesting moon with its thick atmosphere, liquid on the surface, and interesting features. Then again, there are many interesting moons out there with Io, Europa, and Enceladus to name just a few. However, you can't deny that Titan is an interesting moon!