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Titan Flyby – Dec. 20, 2007

Cassini's radar instrument finds lakes in the southern hemisphere of Titan during the 37th flyby of Saturn's moon Titan on Oct. 2, 2007. This was the first confirmation of lakes in the southern hemisphere with the radar instrument. Hundreds of lakes have already been discovered and imaged by radar at Titan's north pole. This finding is important to scientists who are trying to understand how Titan's environment works.
Cassini's radar instrument finds lakes in the southern hemisphere of Titan during the 37th flyby of Saturn's moon Titan on Oct. 2, 2007. This was the first confirmation of lakes in the southern hemisphere with the radar instrument. Hundreds of lakes have already been discovered and imaged by radar at Titan's north pole. This finding is important to scientists who are trying to understand how Titan's environment works.

Cassini Headed South on Titan

Cassini successfully completed its most recent Titan flyby on Dec. 20, 2007, and data are currently being analyzed. During this flyby, the radar instrument studied Titan's "deep south." This will allow scientists to contrast this region against what they found in the lake regions of the north polar area. The spacecraft went as far south as 70 degrees. The radar imaged areas of the Tsegihi region it had not yet seen, and got some overlap in coverage. New ground was covered south of the dune fields of Belet.

Titan Flyby at a Glance

Date
Dec. 21, 2007

Altitude
602 miles (970 km)

Speed
14,000 mph (6.3 km/sec)