Titan has organic matter

Gonz

Gonz

molṑn labé
Staff member
PASADENA, Calif. - A close flyby of Saturn's big moon Titan by the international Cassini spacecraft revealed an upper atmosphere brimming with complex organic material, a finding that could hold clues to how life arose on Earth, scientists said Monday.

Cassini flew within 638 miles of Titan's frozen surface on April 16 and discovered a hydrocarbon-laced upper atmosphere.

Titan's atmosphere is mainly made up of nitrogen and methane, the simplest type of hydrocarbon. But scientists were surprised to find complex organic material in the latest flyby. Because Titan is extremely cold — about minus 290 degrees — scientists expected the organic material to condense and rain down to the surface.

"We are beginning to appreciate the role of the upper atmosphere in the complex carbon cycle that occurs on Titan," said Hunter Waite, a professor at the University of Michigan.

Scientists believe Titan's atmosphere may be similar to that of the primordial Earth and studying it could provide clues to how life began.

The $3.3 billion Cassini mission, funded by NASA and the European and Italian space agencies, was launched in 1997 and took seven years to reach Saturn. The European Huygens probe carried aboard Cassini was released on Dec. 24 and plunged to the surface of Titan in January.
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AP
 
Damnit, we need to get the hyper-speed space travel thing figure out.
We need more living space.
 
catocom said:
Prof, I don't think we can't kill um fast enough. :gun2:
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We don't need to kill them. Just stop trying to save them. They'll kill themselves off. What's left will have more resources, and be smarter.
 
The contradiction of liberalism. You must believe in Darwinism however, you must not allow it to take place.
 
Umm...
1. This isn't a surprise. It's been known for decades that part of Titans atmosphere was made up of complex hydrocarbons (aka "organic" material).
"We are beginning to appreciate the role of the upper atmosphere in the complex carbon cycle that occurs on Titan," said Hunter Waite, a professor at the University of Michigan.
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2. This is the actual discovery.
3. It's not "organic" material if it doesn't come from living things. I seriously doubt any credible scientist has called anything they found "organic." You'll note that this guy refers to the "complex carbon cycle."

Sensational headline, but a misinterpretation of the story. How many people do you suppose will recognize this as a blow to "creation theory?"

Note: I'm not trying to piss on your cornflakes Gonz. You read what the story says. Thye didn't understand what's really going on though (they typically don't).
 
Gonz said:
The contradiction of liberalism. You must believe in Darwinism however, you must not allow it to take place.
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Just out of curiosity, define "Darwinism."
 
Gonz said:
Survival of the fittest
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neg. Survival of the able. Neandrathal man was far superior to Sapiens. Even reputed now to have had a larger brain. We're here, they're not.
 
Prof's is a lot closer. Natural selection in no way guarantees "survival of the fittest." It doesnt' even guarantee survival of the most able. There are many variables involved in natural selection. Even Darwin recognized that he wasn't taking them all into account. I personally think that natural selection is only a part of the process. Heck, it seems evident to me that we survived while neanderthals did not as much through luck (right place, right time) as any other factor. :shrug:
 
chcr said:
Prof's is a lot closer. Natural selection in no way guarantees "survival of the fittest." It doesnt' even guarantee survival of the most able. There are many variables involved in natural selection. Even Darwin recognized that he wasn't taking them all into account. I personally think that natural selection is only a part of the process. Heck, it seems evident to me that we survived while neanderthals did not as much through luck (right place, right time) as any other factor. :shrug:
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Not the able, the most able. Luck, skill, toughness, and flexibility all play their parts.
 
unfortunately we're probably at a point where we would try not to allow natural selection...wonder how that'll turn out, lol
 
chcr said:
3. It's not "organic" material if it doesn't come from living things. I seriously doubt any credible scientist has called anything they found "organic." You'll note that this guy refers to the "complex carbon cycle."
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Afaik, most substances containing carbon are organic. That's why you call it organic chemistry.
 
Luis G said:
Afaik, most substances containing carbon are organic. That's why you call it organic chemistry.
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AFAIK organic comes from the same root as organism. Carbon based compounds are frequently referred to as "organic" but I don't think it's entirely correct.

Well, I just looked up the definintion, and carbon based compounds is one of the definintions. I stand corrected. ;)

Still, we knew they were there, the real discovery was how the upper atmosphere figures in the process.
 
chcr said:
Still, we knew they were there, the real discovery was how the upper atmosphere figures in the process.
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But you know, it is the press, they must take advantage of everything and make you think otherwise while still mantaining some degree of truth (in this case, organic).
 
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