The atmosphere of Triton extends 800 kilometers above Triton's surface. The atmosphere mainly is composed of nitrogen, similar to Titan's atmosphere and Earth's atmosphere. The surface pressure is only 14 microbars, which is 1/70,000th of the surface pressure on Earth. Originally, it was thought Triton had a thick atmosphere. Voyager 2 observed the atmosphere up close in 1989. Recent observations of the atmosphere have shown an increase in temperature.
| Gas | Partial pressure in 1986, μbar |
Partial pressure in 2010, μbar |
|---|---|---|
| N2 | 14 ± 1 | 19+1.8 −1.5 or 39 ± 4 |
| CH4 | 1.6–2.4 × 10−3 | 0.98 ± 0.37 × 10−2 |
| CO | ? | 2.4 × 10−2 |
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