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- P33D-2673: Tropical Cyclone Favorability Between Earth-like and Titan-like regimes
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Board 2673‚ Hall EFG (Poster Hall)NOLA CC
Author(s):Generic 'disconnected' Message
David Moore, University of California Los Angeles (First Author, Presenting Author)
Jonathan Mitchell, University of California Los Angeles
We found that tropical cyclones (i.e., hurricanes) are unlikely to form near the equator or mid-latitudes on a Titan-like planet. The planet’s slow rotation and wide dry land area reduce the spin and energy needed to fuel cyclones. But, at high latitudes—where Titan’s large methane seas are located—conditions such as stronger rotational effects and focused heat from the surface could allow weak storms to form.To investigate this, we used a 3D global climate model to simulate a planet gradually transitioning from Earth-like to Titan-like conditions. We slowed the planet’s rotation, made the “oceans” more volatile (i.e., easier to evaporate), and added a broad dry region near the equator. These changes mimic Titan’s unique atmosphere and surface features and let us test whether it can support storm development.
On Earth, hurricanes form when warm oceans, high humidity, and strong rotational winds combine. Titan shares some of these traits, especially at the poles, but no storms have ever been observed. Our results suggest that while most of Titan’s atmosphere may be too calm or dry for cyclones, its polar seas might still host small, weak versions of these powerful storms.
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