Mountains of Titan Map – 2016 Update

This map of Saturn's moon Titan identifies the locations of mountains that have been named by the International Astronomical Union. The map is an update to a previous version published in 2012 (see PIA16598), and includes an additional mountain area (Moria Montes), along with several "colles" which are collections of hills.

By convention, mountains on Titan are named for mountains from Middle-earth, the fictional setting in fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkien. Unfortunately for "Lord of the Rings" fans, Titan's highest peak is not Doom Mons (see PIA20023). Colles are named for characters from the same works by Tolkien.

The map uses data collected by both the visual and infrared mapping spectrometer (VIMS) and radar instruments on NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, ESA (European Space Agency) and the Italian Space Agency. JPL manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter was designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The radar instrument was built by JPL and the Italian Space Agency, working with team members from the United States and several European countries. The visual and infrared mapping spectrometer team is based at the University of Arizona, Tucson.

For more information about the Cassini-Huygens mission, visit http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov and http://www.nasa.gov/cassini.