Sotra Patera
Stereoscopic map of Sotra Patera and Doom Mons. Height is exaggerated by a factor of 10. The colours are false.
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| Feature type | Patera |
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| Coordinates | 12°30′S 39°48′W / 12.5°S 39.8°WCoordinates: 12°30′S 39°48′W / 12.5°S 39.8°W |
| Diameter | 235 km (146 mi) |
| Eponym | Sotra, Norway |
Sotra Patera (named after the Sotra islands in Norway) is a prominent depression on Titan, the largest moon of Saturn. It was formerly known as Sotra Facula; the current name was approved on 19 December 2012. It is a possible cryovolcanic caldera 30 km (19 mi) across and 1.7 km (1.1 mi) deep, and is immediately to the east of the largest putative cryovolcanic mountain on Titan, the 1.45 km (0.90 mi) high Doom Mons. Sotra Patera is the deepest known pit on Titan.
The ice volcano or cryovolcano Doom Mons forms a roughly circular mountain measuring about 65 kilometres (40 mi) across. It has two peaks standing about 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) and 1,450 metres (4,760 ft) high with multiple craters, with Sotra Patera at 1,700 metres (5,600 ft) being the deepest. Finger-like flows are visible on the flanks of the mountain, measuring perhaps 100 metres (330 ft) thick.
The Cassini–Huygens mission has mapped Sotra Patera using the Cassini orbiter's onboard radar instrument and the visual and infrared mapping spectrometer. An earlier survey of the region in 2004 revealed a circular bright spot, or facula, which was nicknamed "The Rose". A subsequent flyby by Cassini re-surveyed the region from a different angle, enabling members of the US Geological Survey Astrogeology Science Center to generate stereoscopic mapping of Sotra Patera and the surrounding area. Researchers also discovered at least two more mountains and another big crater, forming a chain of mountains several hundred kilometers long flanked by lava-covered lowlands.
With Doom Mons, Sotra Patera is regarded as "the very best evidence, by far, for volcanic topography anywhere documented on an icy satellite", according to planetary scientist Jeffrey Kargel of the University of Arizona. It has been compared with terrestrial volcanoes such as Etna, Laki and volcanic cones near Flagstaff, Arizona. There is as yet no evidence of current activity, but researchers plan to monitor the area for changes.
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