This project focuses on the atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan. The PI, along with a supported Ph.D. researcher and a graduate student, will conduct ground-based observations of Titan using 8 to 10 meter class telescopes equipped with adaptive optics systems and integral field spectrographs. These observations will be combined with in situ data from the Cassini spacecraft, with the goal of tracking the distribution of methane clouds and hazes. The interpretation of the data will be made via this group's radiative transfer model, which will be improved by the addition of new laboratory data on methane transitions and new corrections to the treatment of methane absorption and aerosol scattering. These calculations will yield the 3-dimensional cloud/haze distribution, which will eventually reveal the circulation patterns in Titan's atmosphere. This project will train one or more students in modern observational techniques involving adaptive optics, as well as assist in the development of these techniques at the engineering level. The public will be engaged through the release of images showing the benefit of adaptive optics and highlighting the similarities and differences between the atmospheres of Titan and Earth.
