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Methane on Titan

Posted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 5:26 pm
by RichardTedford
If the liquid we see on Titan is liquid Methane, are we considering Methane powered spacecraft? We would be able to use Titan as a waystation of sorts. Are there any thoughts of "mining" Titan for an alternate power source for Earth?

I'm also guessing that the reason the free flowing methane doesn't burn is because there is no Oxygen on Titan?

Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2005 12:08 am
by S. Bilderback
There are far more practical ways of harvesting energy than an 8 year one way trip to Titan for methane, then an oxidizer would also be needed answering you second question, free oxygen is in short suppy in that corner of the universe.

Good try, I once thought of turning Io and it's molten sulfer into a moon-sized solar charged battery - it could work.