Monday, September 14, 2009

95 Worlds


9-8-09
Today I am finally going to land on Saturn’s Moon, Titan. The things I need are included; a space suit with intense insulation and varying pressure adapter so that I can adjust the pressure of the suit when needed. I also need special insulation because the average surface temperature is -290°F. In my suit I have included some sort of thermostat that will allow me to adjust the temperature inside my space suit, but it has limitations so that I can’t freeze. I am also bringing my camera because I love photography, but I have commissioned somebody to create a special shell so that my camera will be safe in the freezing temperatures. The final thing I need on my journey is my mini fold out lab station. It folds into a small briefcase with a handle for easy travel, but folds out into a small lab table with four legs, and all of my equipment that I need to bring home samples of everything to be tested. Now that we have finally landed on Titan, my co-pilot is helping me suit up for my big decent…out of the space shuttle. As I stepped out of the rocket, I didn’t feel like I was floating, such as the astronauts on the moon did. Of course the fist thing I did was plant a big American flag in the soil because I am the first human to set foot on this moon. Titan and Earth have a very similar atmosphere so I was able to walk around easily, no skipping. I found my way over to an impact crater where I set up my little lab table. After that I started walking around with my camera around my neck and a small basket in my hand so that I could collect samples. Titan has a diameter almost 50% larger than earth, and is 80% more massive, so I hope it is easily inferred that I did not walk around the entire planet during my one-day stay. Even though I have my space suit on, I can tell that the air around me is freezing. The whole environment just looks cold and frozen. There is visible ice, and lots and lots of rocks. The only known stable body of surface liquid on Titan, and the only other ones except for earth known in the solar system are the hydrocarbon lakes in the Polar Regions. After walking around for 16 hours, working for two, discovering one of the lakes, and analyzing a crater hole, I started to head back to the rocket so that we could begin our trip home. During the time I spent on Titan, I got 103 samples to test back in the laboratories, and filled my camera (435 pictures) with an experience that I may never have the chance to do again.

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