Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan In June 2004, the Cassini spacecraft reached its ultimate destination: the Saturn system.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Although Cassini’s primary sponsors are NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Italian Space Agency (ASI), the mission’s team includes partners in 18 other nations.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan The mission was named for two 17th- century scientists, Jean Dominique Cassini of Italy and Christiaan Huygens of Holland. Both men made important discoveries about Saturn. Cassini discovered 4 of Saturns’ moons and the gap between the rings, called the Cassini Gap in his honor. Huygens discovered the moon Titan in 1655, so the Titan landing probe is named for him.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan The Cassini spacecraft traveled for over six years to reach Saturn. It was launched on October 15, 1997 aboard a Titan IV- Centaur rocket.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan On its way to Saturn, Cassini captured this breathtaking image of Jupiter and its moon Io, moving across the cloud tops.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Cassini compiled this early image of Saturn in November 2003, from a distance of million km (69.2 million miles).

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan At that time, Cassini was not yet close enough to capture the clarity of this ultraviolet image taken by the Hubble space telescope, which orbits Earth. Cassini photo. Hubble ultraviolet image.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan As Cassini approached Saturn, however, it sent back increasingly detailed images. Astronomers watched two storms merge in Saturn’s southern hemisphere from February to March, 2004.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Intricate details of the rings and small nearby moons became visible as the spacecraft sped toward its destination. Cassini image of rings and moons, May 2004.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan On June 11, 2004, Cassini entered the Saturn system with a flyby of Phoebe, an outer moon. Artist’s conception Artist’s conception of an ice crevasse on Phoebe.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Then, in July 2004, Cassini fired its thrusters and was captured into Saturn’s orbit, passing through the ring plane on its first swing around the planet. September 16 June 3 April 2

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan When the craft entered Saturn’s orbit, it took the closest-range images ever taken of the rings. This will be Cassini’s closest approach to Saturn’s rings during the mission.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan But Cassini is much more than a close-up camera. Cassini can "see" in wavelengths the human eye cannot, and "feel" magnetic fields and tiny dust particles no human hand could detect.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan The orbiter is providing information on Saturn’s planetary structure and rings, as well as temperature, winds, clouds, magnetic fields and lightning. Ultraviolet ring images: red is dust, blue is water ice.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Scientists will use this information to understand the nature and environment of Saturn during its formation and early evolution.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Cassini is also studying Saturn’s numerous moons and "icy satellites.” Its orbits will bring it close to many of the moons.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Compare the Voyager 2 photo of Phoebe on the left, taken in 1981 from 2.2 million kilometers (1.36 million miles) away, to the 2004 Cassini image on the right, taken from a distance of only 32,500 kilometers (20,200 miles).

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan The giant moon Titan is a primary science target. Cassini will fly past Titan many times and study its methane-rich nitrogen atmosphere and icy, hydrocarbon-rich surface. False-color image of Titan. Radar image of Titan’s surface. Geology of Titan’s South Pole region.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan The Cassini mission has another component: a moon landing. In December 2004, the Huygens probe, built by the ESA, separated from Cassini and began a 22- day journey to Titan.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan After arriving on January 14, 2005, the probe descended through Titan’s murky atmosphere and landed on its surface.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan These Cassini images show the landing site of the Huygens probe: on the left, the location of the site on Titan, and on the right, a close-up of that area.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Titan’s surface, with a temperature of -255°F, may contain tar-like compounds and water/ammonia ice. Titan may also have liquid methane seas and lakes. Artist’s conception of Huygens floating on a methane/ethane lake.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan The probe carried instruments to sample Titan’s atmosphere and obtain images of the surface as it descended. Huygens survived for several hours after landing.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Photos courtesy ESA/NASA/ University of Arizona The first images released to the world of Titan from the Huygens probe: above, during the descent, and at right, from the surface.

Cassini-Huygens Mission Saturn and Titan Though the Huygens mission lasted only a few hours, Cassini’s four-year exploration will entail over 70 orbits around the ringed planet and its moons. For the latest on the Cassini mission and the Huygens landing, click here.