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DARMSTADT, Germany, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- The European Space
Agency's Huygens probe has transmitted images from the surface of
Saturn's moon Titan.
The images, released by ESA on Friday, show a boulder-strewn
field interspersed with frozen blocks of ice -- probably methane --
and something vaguely resembling an ocean in the distance. They are
the first photographs ever taken of the giant moon's surface, which
is located nearly 1 billion miles from the sun.
Huygens sent about two hours' worth of data back to Earth
via relay by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, including images during its
descent to Titan's surface, which appeared to show drainage channels
like those on Earth.
ESA officials called the probe's mission a "resounding
success."
Huygens had piggy-backed aboard NASA's Cassini spacecraft
for seven years before separating Dec. 25 on a dead-stick trajectory
toward Titan. The probe entered the moon's atmosphere and apparently
parachuted successfully to Titan's surface.
"This is a great achievement for Europe and its U.S.
partners in this ambitious international endeavor to explore the
Saturnian system," said Jean-Jacques Dordain, ESA's director
general.