Atmosphere of Triton
The atmosphere of Triton is the layer of gases surrounding Triton. Like the atmospheres of Titan and Pluto, Triton's atmosphere is composed primarily of nitrogen, with a smaller component of methane. It hosts a layer of organic haze extending up to 30 kilometers above its surface and a deck of thin bright clouds at about 4 kilometers in altitude. Due to Triton's low gravity, its atmosphere is loosely bound, extending over 800 kilometers from its surface.
Voyager 2 image of Triton after closest approach, showing the haze in Triton's atmosphere weakly scattering sunlight and "extending" its thin crescent | |
| General information | |
|---|---|
| Height | ~870 km (exobase) |
| Average surface pressure | ~1.4 Pa (1.38×10−5 atm) (1989) ~1.9 Pa (1.88×10−5 atm) (1997) |
| Composition | |
| Nitrogen (N 2) | >99% |
| Methane (CH 4) | ~0.025% |
| Carbon monoxide (CO) | ~0.06% |
Triton, along with Saturn's moon Titan, is one of only two moons in the Solar System known to have significant, global atmospheres. The surface pressure is only 14 microbars (1.4 Pa or 0.0105mmHg), 1⁄70000 of the surface pressure on Earth. Similar to the atmosphere of Pluto, Triton's atmosphere is sensitive to seasonal changes; observations obtained in 1998 showed an increase in temperature, increasing the atmosphere's density.