Throughout their life cycle, space launch vehicles impact their local and global environments on Earth and in space. Given the space industry’s projected growth, recent literature suggests that the atmospheric consequences of these activities are understudied and insufficiently addressed. Rockets uniquely emit combustion gases and particles into distinct layers of the atmosphere, inducing effects that include perturbations of ozone chemistry and of Earth’s energy balance through radiative forcing. International environmental regulations do not presently address rocket emissions and only scarce, isolated policies exist at the national level. Additional research on the impact of space launches, including new in situ measurements coupled with global atmospheric models, is required to inform policymaking and future mitigation. The development of an actionable and collaborative sustainability index for launch vehicles could serve as a basis for future regulations or incentivize the sector towards more sustainable designs by making emissions reduction a competitive advantage.

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With a hazy atmosphere, a hydrocarbon cycle, seasons, and a diverse set of surface features, Titan is one of the most unique objects in the Solar System. Further exploration of Titan can elucidate its geologic activity, chemical history, and astrobiological potential. While one-way missions can provide a wealth of information about Titan through remote sensing, in-situ measurements, and communication relays back to Earth, returning samples from Titan allows for unparalleled scientific analysis. Here, we propose a novel mission concept to explore and analyze Titan in situ and return samples from its hydrocarbon lakes. Within ORACLE, a separate lander and orbiter segment will perform all the scientific investigations and collect the hydrocarbon lake samples. After collection of the samples, another segment will return the samples to Earth while the lander and orbiter continue investigating Titan. This mission concept demonstrates novel Titan lake sampling technology and incorporates sample return and in-situ scientific investigation to significantly increase our understanding of Titan, with far broader planetary science implications.

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