PARIS, Oct. 21 (UPI) -- The European probe Huygens will listen for alien thunderstorms as it descends through the atmosphere of Saturn's moon, Titan, UniverseToday.com reported.
Huygens, which has been riding aboard NASA's Cassini spacecraft, will detach and attempt to land safely on the surface of the giant moon Jan. 14. A microphone aboard Huygens also will attempt to record the patter of methane rain and the splash of its landing, mission controllers said.
Those sounds, if heard, will be relayed back so everyone on Earth can hear the sounds of Titan, controllers said.
A similar microphone for Mars was destroyed when NASA's Mars Polar Lander crashed a few years ago.
Huygens will be listening for thunder, associated with lightning, because similar conditions on the young planet Earth are thought to be responsible for the formation of organic chemicals, which could have led to the rise of living organisms.
The difference between Earth and Titan, controllers said, is Titan's atmosphere is composed of liquid methane, not water.
