Observations from Cassini VIMS and ISS show localized but extensive surface brightenings in the wake of the 2010 September cloudburst. Four separate areas, all at similar latitude, show similar changes: Yalaing Terra, Hetpet Regio, Concordia Regio, and Adiri. Our analysis shows a general pattern to the time-sequence of surface changes: after the cloudburst the areas darken for months, then brighten for a year before reverting to their original spectrum. From the rapid reversion timescale we infer that the process driving the brightening owes to a fine-grained solidified surface layer. The specific chemical composition of such solid layer remains unknown. Evaporative cooling of wetted terrain may play a role in the generation of the layer, or it may result from a physical grain-sorting process.
CITATION STYLE
Barnes, J. W., Buratti, B. J., Turtle, E. P., Bow, J., Dalba, P. A., Perry, J., … Soderblom, L. A. (2013). Precipitation-induced surface brightenings seen on Titan by Cassini VIMS and ISS. Planetary Science, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/2191-2521-2-1
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