| NASA Center: |
Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
|---|
| Image # : |
PIA01050 |
|---|
| Date : |
10/15/1997
|
|---|
|
Title
Launch of Cassini Orbiter & Huygens Probe
Full Description
A seven-year journey to the ringed planet Saturn begins with the
liftoff of a Titan IVB/Centaur carrying the Cassini orbiter and its
attached Huygens probe. Launch occurred at 4:43 a.m. EDT, October 15,
1997 from Launch Complex 40 on Cape Canaveral Air Station.
After a 2.2-billion mile journey that will include two swing-bys of
Venus and one of Earth to gain additional velocity, the two-storey tall
spacecraft will arrive at Saturn in July 2004. The orbiter will circle
the planet for four years, its complement of 12 scientific instruments
gathering data about Saturn's atmosphere, rings and magnetosphere and
conducting closeup observations of the Saturnian moons.
Huygens, with a separate suite of six science instruments, will
separate from Cassini to fly on a ballistic trajectory toward Titan,
the only celestial body besides Earth to have an atmosphere rich in
nitrogen. Scientists are eager to study further this chemical
similarity in hopes of learning more about the origins of our own
planet Earth.
Huygens will provide the first direct sampling of Titan's atmospheric
chemistry and the first detailed photographs of its surface. The
Cassini mission is an international effort involving NASA, the European
Space Agency (ESA) and the Italian Space Agency, Agenzia Spaziale
Italiana (ASI).
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the U.S. contribution to the
mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, DC. The major
U.S. contractor is Lockheed Martin, which provided the launch vehicle
and upper stage, spacecraft propulsion module and radioisotope
thermoelectric generators that will provide power for the spacecraft.
The Titan IV/Centaur is a U.S. Air Force launch vehicle, and launch
operations were managed by the 45th Space Wing.
Keywords
Cassini Huygens Saturn Venus Titan IV Centaur European Space Agency ESA Agenzia Spaziale Italiana ASI Jet Propulsion Laboratory JPL Lockheed Martin Air Force 45th Space Wing Launch Complex 40 Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
Subject Category
Space Probes, Planet-Saturn,
Reference Numbers
- Center:
JPL
- Center Number:
PIA01050
- GRIN DataBase Number:
GPN-2000-000458
Source Information
- Creator/Photographer: NASA
- Original Source: DIGITAL
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Updated October 31, 2002
• History Questions: NASA History Office
• Responsible NASA Official: Steve Garber
• Author: Michael Hahn. Editor: Dwayne A. Day
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