Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite between positions downrange, generally northeast of this position. Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite The Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) was a NASA-operated orbital observatory whose mission was to study the Earth’s atmosphere, particularly the protective ozone layer. The satellite was deployed from Space Shuttle "Discovery" during the STS-48 mission on 15 September 1991. It entered Earth orbit at an operational altitude of , with an orbital inclination of 57 degrees. The original mission duration was to be only three years, but was extended several times. When the mission finally ended in June 2005 due to funding cuts, 14 years after the
Atmosphere of Titan within Titan itself, released via eruptions from cryovolcanoes. A possible biological origin for the methane has not been discounted (see Life on Titan). There is also a pattern of air circulation found flowing in the direction of Titan's rotation, from west to east. Observations by "Cassini" of the atmosphere made in 2004 also suggest that Titan is a "super rotator", like Venus, with an atmosphere that rotates much faster than its surface. Titan's ionosphere is also more complex than Earth's, with the main ionosphere at an altitude of 1,200 km but with an additional layer of charged particles at 63