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This is a list of named geological features on Saturn's moon Titan. Official names for these features have only been announced very recently, as Titan's surface was virtually unknown before the arrival of the Cassini–Huygens probe. Some features were known by informal nicknames beforehand; these names are noted where appropriate.
Contents
Albedo features
Albedo features on Titan are named after sacred or enchanted places in world mythologies and literature.
Arcūs
Titanean arcūs (arc-shaped features) are named after deities of happiness.
Colles
Colles are small hills or knobs which are named after characters in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth.
Craters
Craters on Titan are named after deities of wisdom.
Faculae
Faculae (bright spots) are named after islands on Earth that are not politically independent. Groups of faculae are named after archipelagos on Earth.
Fluctūs
The term "fluctus" refers to flow terrain. Fluctūs on Titan are named after mythological figures associated with beauty.
Flumina
A flumen is a feature that looks like a channel carved by liquid. They are named after mythical or imaginary rivers.
Freta
A fretum is a strait of liquid connecting two larger areas of liquids. They are named after characters from the Foundation series of science fiction novels by Isaac Asimov.
Insulae
Insulae are islands within Titan's 'seas'. They are named after legendary islands.
Labyrinthi
Labyrinthi (complexes of intersecting valleys or ridges) on Titan are named after planets from the fictional Dune universe created by Frank Herbert.
Lacunae
Lacunae are dark areas with the appearance of dry lake beds, which are named after intermittent lakes on Earth.
Lacūs
Lacūs (plural form of lacus used in Titan geological nomenclature) are hydrocarbon lakes.
Large ringed features
Large ring features are named after deities of wisdom in world mythology.
Maculae
Titanean maculae (dark spots) are named after deities of happiness, peace, and harmony in world mythology.
Maria
Maria (plural of mare) are hydrocarbon seas.
Montes
Mountains are named after mountains from the fictional Middle-Earth created by J.R.R. Tolkien.
Planitiae
Planitiae (low plains) on Titan are named after planets from the fictional Dune universe created by Frank Herbert.
Regiones
Regiones (regions distinctly different from their surroundings) are named after deities of peace and happiness.
Sinūs
Sinus (bays) within seas or lakes are named after terrestrial bays, coves, fjords or inlets.
Terrae
Terrae are extensive landmasses. As with the albedo features, they are named after sacred and enchanted locations from cultures across the world.
Virgae
Virgae (streaks of colour) are named after rain gods in world mythologies.
Informal names for unnamed features
Because the exact nature of many surface features remain mysterious, a number of features have not yet received formal names and are known by nicknames. In most cases, indications of brightness and darkness refer not to visible light, but to the infrared images used to look through Titan's obscuring haze. Cassini has also begun to map portions of Titan using radar.