Titan

For my PhD thesis, I studied the atmospheric dynamics and chemistry of Titan, Saturn's largest moon. One of the most interesting aspects of Titan is the presence of stable bodies of liquid on its surface. These include methane and ethane lakes and seas, which are similar to Earth's oceans, lakes, seas, etc, making it the only celestial body in our solar system other than Earth known to have stable liquid reservoirs. Titan is of great scientific interest because its atmosphere and liquid reservoirs may provide clues about the early Earth's atmosphere and the conditions that led to the development of life on our planet. The existence of an atmosphere and liquid bodies on Titan suggests that there may be the potential for some form of life to exist on the moon. While it is unlikely that life as we know it could exist on Titan due to the extreme cold temperatures and the lack of liquid water, it is possible that other forms of life could exist that are adapted to the unique conditions on the moon.

My thesis is a "descent" through Titan's atmosphere, starting with the conditions in its orbit and ending at the surface. I conducted part of this research as a Early Career Scientist with the NASA Dragonfly Mission, which will be sending a probe to Titan in 2027 (to learn more about the Dragonfly mission, click here). My research explores how meteoroids contribute to its atmospheric chemistry, greatly improves an existing Titan GCM to study superrotating jets when topography is included, and predicts how surface winds shape sand dunes in Titan's equatorial desert. A link to my completed dissertation can be found herehttps://www.proquest.com/pqdtlocal1005735/docview/2827163227/CD10F0EC9A4E4942PQ/1?accountid=13314&parentSessionId=jzr5J%2Fj7CRkTDd9wgPG9CAk9hVzuuKEF1XQiKZghWpE%3D