1. Several hundred lakes and seas have been observed, with several dozen estimated to contain more hydrocarbon liquid than Earth's oil and gas reserves. But with enough of a support system, the moon of Saturn could eventually become a second home for humans — no unpredictable mutations required. Saturn’s largest moon Titan is one of several candidates for possible future colonization of the outer Solar System. 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. At least one of these is larger than any of the Great Lakes in North America. Titan is far colder than Earth, with a surface temperature around -290 degrees F. At that temperature, you wouldn't last very long. ... Space Travel: Can humans live … If you were to attempt to just pack up and move to Titan without being adequately prepared for what awaits you there, you'd die pretty quickly. While this water can be used to generate breathable oxygen, more is blown into Titan's atmosphere from the geysers on the icy moon of Enceladus (also a moon of Saturn), as they start as water molecules and evolve into oxygen and hydrogen. Findings from the study led by Ralph Lorenz, Cassini radar team member from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, USA, are reported in the 29 January 2008 issue of the Geophysical Research Letters. This is the first discovery of currently existing lakes beyond Earth. According to Cassini data from 2008, Titan has hundreds of times more liquid hydrocarbons than all the known oil and natural gas reserves on Earth. [7] Nitrogen, methane and ammonia can all be used to produce fertilizer for growing food. Sending one or more people on a one-way mission to Titan would involve many, many challenges that we have yet to master. These hydrocarbons rain from the sky and collect in vast deposits that form lakes and dunes. Netflix has been launching a barrage of new science-fiction content lately, with original series like Stranger Things and Altered Carbon and new movies such as The Cloverfield Paradox and Mute pretty much taking over the channel. That atmosphere would protect you from the damaging radiation that is constantly striking the surface of just about every other heavenly body in outer space. NASA revealed in 2014 that the moon may… [6] Another theoretically possible means to become airborne on Titan would be to use a hot air balloon-like vehicle filled with an Earth-like atmosphere at Earth-like temperatures (because oxygen is only slightly denser than nitrogen, the atmosphere in a habitat on Titan would be about one third as dense as the surrounding atmosphere), although such a vehicle would need a skin able to keep the extreme cold out in spite of the light weight required. But could people really live on Titan, or is this purely the stuff of science fiction? Managing long-term effects of low gravity on human health[citation needed] would therefore be a significant issue for long-term occupation of Titan, more so than on Mars. Titan is also the only other location in the solar system we know of that has liquid lakes and seas, according to NPR. In other words, as far as we know, Titan would not be inhabitable for humans — at least not without some modifications. They can include symptoms such as loss of bone density, loss of muscle density, and a weakened immune system. The atmosphere contains plentiful nitrogen and methane. Titan has a solid, rocky surface like Earth, and it is the only place in the solar system other than Earth with such a thick atmosphere. [4][clarification needed], The American aerospace engineer and author Robert Zubrin identified Saturn as the most important and valuable of the four gas giants in the Solar System, because of its relative proximity, low radiation, and excellent system of moons. Due to Titan's extremely low temperatures, heating of any flight-bound vehicle becomes a key obstacle. Nitrogen is ideal to add buffer gas partial pressure to breathable air (it forms about 78% of Earth's atmosphere). "[6] The atmosphere contains plentiful nitrogen and methane. Evidence also indicates the presence of liquid water and ammonia under the surface, which are delivered to the surface by volcanic activity. Additionally, strong evidence indicates that liquid methane exists on the surface. These effects are still an active field of study. It's also impossible for liquid water to exist at that temperature, according to space.com. It's atmospheric pressure is only about 1.5 times that of Earth, and its gravity is just a bit weaker than our moon's. Under these conditions, you wouldn't need a pressurized suit to survive, according to space.com, and you'd hypothetically be OK as long as you solved the temperature and breathing problems. Whil… Titan has a dense atmosphere of 95 percent nitrogen and 5 … Robert Zubrin has pointed out that Titan possesses an abundance of all the elements necessary to support life, saying "In certain ways, Titan is the most hospitable extraterrestrial world within our solar system for human colonization." The film doesn't really make the case that Titan could support human life; at least not without some modifications. Plus, you'd have a pretty sweet view of Saturn, which would take up about half the sky. Astronauts in Earth orbit have remained in microgravity for up to a year or more at a time. [3] The lakes range in size from about a kilometer in width to one hundred kilometers across. [8], The very high ratio of atmospheric density to surface gravity also greatly reduces the wingspan needed for an aircraft to maintain lift, so much so that a human would be able to strap on wings and easily fly through Titan's atmosphere while wearing a sort of spacesuit that could be manufactured with today's technology. Additionally, strong evidence indicates that liquid methane exists on the surface. He also named Titan as the most important moon on which to establish a base to develop the resources of the Saturn system.[5]. And they're continuing that trend with their next blockbuster, The Titan, which sees an attempt to colonize Titan, a moon of Saturn, after the Earth's resources become depleted. They're filled with liquid methane and ethane instead of water, but still, its surface is much closer in structure to that of Earth than even Mars' surface, potentially making it a better candidate for human settlements. 2020 Bustle Digital Group. Titan has a surface gravity of 0.138 g, slightly less than the Moon. Evidence also indicates the presence of liquid water and ammonia under the surface, which are delivered to the surface by volcanic activity. The movie stars Sam Worthington as an Air Force pilot who is chosen to undergo a military experiment that will turn him into a superhuman capable of surviving on Titan; since the climate there is portrayed as far less hospitable than that of Earth. Robert Zubrin has pointed out that Titan possesses an abundance of all the elements necessary to support life, saying "In certain ways, Titan is the most hospitable extraterrestrial world within our solar system for human colonization. Titan does have some attributes in its favor that actually make it the most hospitable place for humans in the outer solar system. In some ways it would actually be easier to live on Titan than Mars. Plus, the abundance of methane and other hydrocarbons on Titan offer a ton of energy-creating potential, so there's no shortage of resources for a long-term colonization project, according to NPR. 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. https://listverse.com/2016/07/03/10-moons-humans-could-colonize Titan has no water, but some scientists wonder if life based on methane might live on Titan. Titan also has an atmosphere that's about 95 percent nitrogen and 5 percent methane, meaning it's not breathable for humans, who require oxygen. Robert Zubrin, "Colonizing the Outer Solar System", in, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Titan's surface organics surpass oil reserves on Earth", "Cassini Spacecraft Images Seas on Saturn's Moon Titan", The Case for Mars: The Plan to Settle the Red Planet and Why We Must, Islands in the Sky: Bold New Ideas for Colonizing Space, Julian Nott - Titan: A Distant But Enticing Destination for Human Visitors, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Colonization_of_Titan&oldid=990663050, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles that may contain original research from February 2017, All articles that may contain original research, Articles containing predictions or speculation, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from March 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Stephen L. Gillett, "Titan as the Abode of Life,", This page was last edited on 25 November 2020, at 20:15. Titan is already home to all the elements needed to sustain life as we know it. The dark dunes that run along the equator contain a volume of organics several hundred times larger than Earth's coal reserves.[2]. It is the only moon known to have a dense atmosphere, and the only known body in space, other than Earth, where clear evidence of stable bodies of surface liquid has been found. Titan’s thick atmosphere and great distance from the Sun means that the solar wind doesn’t irradiate the ground as much. Effective countermeasures for the negative effects of low gravity are well-established, particularly an aggressive regimen of daily physical exercise or weighted clothing. Titan is the largest moon of Saturn and the second-largest natural satellite in the Solar System. [1] "Titan is just covered in carbon-bearing material—it's a giant factory of organic chemicals", said Ralph Lorenz, who leads the study of Titan based on radar data from Cassini. 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