Titan's Methane Lake Evaporation Evidence
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rardragonTitan's Methane Lake Evaporation Evidence
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rardragonDrawing from evidence I found throughout various sources, I have concluded that the lake
on Titan evaporated. I will begin by presenting my pieces of evidence, and further elaborate
upon each. Finally, I will refute the opposing arguments.
To begin, allow me to frame the case. Throughout its orbit around one of Saturn’s moons, a
probe took a photo of a specific methane lake on Titan. When it took the same photo two years
later, the lake had mysteriously disappeared. So, what happened to the lake? Scientists created
two main claims: the lake evaporated, or the lake froze. Based on my research, I have received
conclusive evidence that the lake evaporated.
As you may know, kinetic energy increases or decreases based on temperature. While
attraction between molecules remains constant, the amount of energy they are exposed to
changes their freedom of movement. Transferring energy (heat) into molecules changes both the
freedom of movement and its phase: molecules will gradually begin to separate from each other,
and (certain materials, such as methane) will become a gas or liquid, depending on the intensity
of the heat. The opposite is also true- molecules lose their freedom of movement as it becomes
colder, and may change phase into a solid or liquid. Therefore, in order for the lake on Titan to
have frozen, temperatures must have decreased from when the photo was last taken. Likewise, if
the lake evaporated, temperatures must have increased from when the photo was last taken.
Evidence Card C provides a timeline- the first photo was taken five years into summer, while the
second was taken in the seventh year of summer. While summers on Titan are still quite cold, a
scientist at the Universal Space Agency states “Summer days have more hours of sunlight.
Therefore, more energy is transferred to the lake in summer than any other season.” Because
Titan reaches its peak in energy (temperature) in summer, it is nearly certain that the lake
evaporated- due to the increased temperatures the liquid methane was exposed to, its molecules
gained kinetic energy. By extension, the methane molecules also gained greater freedom of
movement, thus becoming a gas and evaporating.
I will now begin refuting opposing arguments. (The main argument made by the opposing
side of this matter is that Titan maintains an extremely cold temperature (-290°F), even in
summer. While this is true, it is irrelevant- summer is the hottest time of the year on Titan. If
the lake was ever frozen, it would have frozen in spring or winter, not at the end of summer.
Additionally, according to Evidence Card B, scientists have never found a summer temperature
low enough to freeze methane in the specific region where the lake was located- further proof
that the lake is extremely unlikely to have frozen.
In conclusion, I have proven that the lake on Titan evaporated. As you can see, the
aforementioned photos were both taken in summer, when Titan experiences its highest
temperature. When methane molecules experience an increase in kinetic energy (which can be
achieved by a boost in temperature) they gradually gain more freedom of movement. Because
summer is when Titan’s heat is at its peak, molecules receive more kinetic energy during this
time than any other season. Based on these facts, I have concluded that the methane within
Titan’s lake evaporated.
