Q& Awith
Dr . Rosaly Lopes
Dr . Rosaly Lopes researching a volcano in Vanuatu , Pacific .
In this issue of Sky ’ s Up , we are interviewing planetary geologist and volcanologist Dr . Rosaly Lopes — one of the world ’ s top experts on volcanoes . Her major research interests are in planetary and terrestrial surface processes with an emphasis on volcanology . She was part of the NASA Galileo and Cassini mission team , is author of many scientific papers and books and has received many awards , including the Carl Sagan Medal in 2005 and the Lowell Thomas in 2014 .
What was your expectation
Q regarding the Cassini-Huygens mission ?
I knew we would make a
A lot of new discoveries . We had several main working groups of scientists : Saturn atmosphere , rings , magnetosphere / fields and particles , icy moons , and Titan . My main work was on Titan , but I also had involvement in the icy moons group . I was hoping we would find active cryovolcanism . I expected it to be on Titan , but we found it on Enceladus . However , landing a probe on Titan and studying this giant moon from orbit were the highlights for me .
In your opinion , what were the main results
Q obtained by Cassini ?
There were a lot of amazing discoveries . From
A my personal point of view , the discovery of active cryovolcanism on Enceladus and lakes of liquid methane on Titan were major and exciting results . However , seeing the surface of Titan for the first time , and the geology resulting from
COURTESY OF Dr . Rosaly Lopes the interaction of the surface and atmosphere was amazing . Titan is the Earth of the outer solar system . Both Enceladus and Titan are ocean worlds and have the potential for life . You can see a good article about the Cassini “ top 13 ” here : www . space . com / 38142-cassini-greatestsaturn-discoveries . html How do you envision the future of exploring
Q Saturn and its Moons ?
The Dragonfly mission to Titan is scheduled
A for launch in the late 2020s . It will make measurements of the composition of the surface among others . I have no doubt that we will get a dedicated mission to Enceladus before long , with a focus on astrobiology . There is also a concept being studied to drop probes into Saturn ’ s atmosphere to make detailed studies of the composition , structure , and dynamics . 21