Titan

Titan is the largest moon of Saturn and the second-largest natural satellite in the entire Sol system, as well as the only moon in the system with an appreciably dense atmosphere. Its geochemistry is unique in the Sol system: Titan has the volatile composition of cryonae and a sparse hydrological system of hydrocarbons and nitrogen; as such, it is the archetype of the chionae planetary class. An impressive 265 million people, mostly humans and Calypsians, live on this strange and cold world, with the primary hub of activity being the city of New Kathmandu.

Geography

Location

Titan is the largest and second-farthest major moon of the planet Saturn, which is the sixth planet from its sun Sol. It orbits at roughly 20 times its parent planet's radius, exceeded only by the major moon Iapetus. Its rotation is synchronized to its orbit, and thus one titanoid hemisphere (the Saturnbound face, or "near side") is constantly visible to Saturn while the other (the spacebound face, or "far side") is never visible. However, this does not matter too much, since Titan is blanketed by an opaque, dense atmosphere of nitrogen and vaporous hydrocarbons that give this world's sky an intense golden-yellow hue.

Surface

The internal structure of Titan is the strangest of any planetoid in the system: the icy, pseudo-tectonic crust of the moon drifts atop a mantle-like sea. Titan's surface is marked by broad regions of bright and dark terrain, including Xanadu Terra: a large region about the size of Earth's continent Australia with a high albedo. Xanadu is filled with hills and cut by river valleys; indeed, most of the satellite's equator (especially the deeply crevassed Shangri-La Terra) is eroded by Titan's unusual hydrocarbon solvent cycle. The poles of this hazy world are saturated by large seas and lakes of liquid methane and ethane.

Ecosystem

Titan's cold hydrocarbon lakes are under extensive scientific study due to the complex chemistry that occurs within them. One of the leading models for explaining this system of chemistry is complex prebiotic chemistry that may qualify as protocellular life, but this has yet to be fully understood or confirmed.

Geopolitics

The Titan Harmony Organization –sometimes referred to by the name of the treaty that formed it, the Titan Compact– is a collaborative organization operated by both humans and Calypsians that oversees and manages the habitation of this cold, exotic moon. This makes Titan one of the only celestial bodies that is cohabited by Calypsians and any of the oxygenic sophont species, and the THO's membership in the Saturn Alliance (and by proxy the United Nations of Sol) gives the Calypsians a voice in the happenings of the Sol system.

by NASA (JPL - Cassini) / Val Klavans

Archive Data

ORBITAL CHARACTERISTICS

System

Sol

Parent body

Saturn

Periapsis

1186680.14 km

Apoapsis

1257059.86 km

Semi-major axis

1221870 km

Eccentricity

0.0288

Inclination

0.35°

Orbital period

15.95 days

Rotation period

382.8 hours

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Class

cold mesobaric subchiona (C)

Radius

2574.7 km

Surface area

8.3e+7 km²

Volume

7.2e+10 km³

Mass

1.35e+23 kg

Gravity

1.4 m/s²

Atmospheric pressure

1.45 atm

Atmosphere composition

• 95.0% nitrogen
• 4.9% methane
• 0.1% other gases

Average temperature

-179.5°C

BIOSPHERE INFORMATION

The information presented here is based on scientifically contested information and not universally acknowledged.

Life

Organic protocellular

Biome(s)

marine

Origin

Abiogenesis

Genesis group

Titangenia

ERPA Biosecurity Rating

LOW

HABITATION INFORMATION

Tech level

14

Population

265 million

Demonym

Titanian

Administrated by

Titan Harmony Organization

Member of

Saturn Alliance