When NASA announced a future mission to Saturn's moon, Titan, where a robotic submersible would explore the moon's massive lakes of liquid methane, the gasps of awe were audible.

Titan is the only moon in the solar system that has an atmosphere with its own methane cycle, which is somewhat similar to our planet's water cycle. This methane cycle is driven by liquid methane that rains on the landscape as hydrocarbons that eventually formed rivers, lakes and seas.

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These bodies of liquid methane found on Titan have been studied and observed by NASA's Cassini spacecraft during numerous flybys. Several seas have been measured and range anywhere in depth from a few meters deep to over 660 feet deep, which is the maximum depth the Cassini radar can detect.

The Titan Submarine or Titan Sub concept was revealed by NASA Glenn's COMPASS Team and Applied Research Lab researchers during the Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Symposium.

Titan Sub is envisioned to dive into Titan's largest sea, the Kraken Mare, where the autonomous submersible vehicle will complete a 90-day mission. The sub will explore some 1,250 miles of the sea's mysterious abyssal environment and could potentially detect marine life.

The sub will experience long periods beneath Titan's unpredictable seas. It will be powered by a radioisotope generator which works by converting heat from radioactive pellets into electricity.

It won't be possible for Titan Sub to receive and send data while it's submerged, however. That's why it will ascend to the surface regularly to transmit data back to Earth.

Kraken Mare is not at all a tranquil, calm alien sea. It's known to consist of perilous waves caused by strong tides that can prove challenging for the sub. Kraken Mare's extremely cold, reaching temperatures of -298 Fahrenheit. 

The last time a probe landed on the eerie surface of Titan was more than a decade ago with the Huygens probe. Now, NASA's attempt to again explore Saturn's mysterious moon find clues about the origin of molecular life in the solar system.

TagsNASA Plans to Send a Submarine to Explore Titan's Mysterious Methane Sea, NASA, saturn moon titan, titan moon, NASA submarine titan moon saturn, Kraken Mare, titan sea kraken mare