The British Interplanetary Society is considering launching a boat from Earth, hurling it 746 million miles through space, and plopping it onto one of the minus-290 degrees Fahrenheit methane oceans of Titan. This mission to Saturn’s largest moon would be the first of its kind to probe an alien ocean and—depending on the weather conditions—could be the first spacecraft to witness extraterrestrial rain. It would be flown in bits from the James Watt Foundry in Birmingham, along with a small, cryogenically frozen contingent of Kronstadt Sailors (well used to cooler climes) and transportation mules. The 2,766 pieces including a deconstructed Bolinder-Munktell marine diesel and two crankshafts will, on arrival, be reassembled on the shores of Kraken Mare.
This is not a cat related story as such, since there will be no moggies on the trip. The payload of some 250 tons precludes the carrying of an adequate additional supply of Boz-snacks. However we shall follow its progress eagerly, with a view (If it is successful) to getting an Arctic Coleyfishtrawler up there whilst the seas on Titan are still relatively virginal.
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