Ralph D. Lorenz Randolph L. Kirk Jonathan I. Lunine Ellen R. Stofan Rosaly Lopes Stephen D. Wall The Cassini Radar Team Jani Radebaugh 2007 <p><span>The Cassini&nbsp;Titan&nbsp;Radar mapper has observed elevated blocks and ridge-forming block chains on Saturn's moon Titan demonstrating high topography we term “mountains.” Summit flanks measured from the T3 (February 2005) and T8 (October 2005) flybys have a mean maximum slope of 37° and total elevations up to 1930 m as derived from a shape-from-shading model corrected for the probable effects of&nbsp;image resolution. Mountain peak morphologies and surrounding, diffuse blankets give evidence that erosion has acted upon these features, perhaps in the form of fluvial runoff. Possible&nbsp;formation mechanisms&nbsp;for these mountains include crustal compressional tectonism and upthrusting of blocks, extensional tectonism and formation of horst-and-graben, deposition as blocks of impact&nbsp;</span>ejecta<span>, or dissection and erosion of a preexisting layer of material. All above processes may be at work, given the diversity of geology evident across Titan's surface. Comparisons of mountain and blanket volumes and&nbsp;erosion rate&nbsp;estimates for Titan provide a typical mountain age as young as 20–100 million years.</span></p> application/pdf 10.1016/j.icarus.2007.06.020 en Elsevier Mountains on Titan observed by Cassini Radar article