NASA’s Saturn probe Cassini has started sending images from its new orbit, after entering its newest mission phase – Ring-Grazing Orbits – on November 30.
Cassini captured pictures of Saturn’s atmosphere while flying high above the northern hemisphere of ringed planet.
There will be 20 new orbits for Cassini in the new phase, with each orbit lasting for about a week. This phase will continue until April 22, and end with close flyby of Saturn’s moon Titan.
In each orbit, the spacecraft will move high above Saturn’s northern hemisphere and then go past the outer edges of the planet’s main rings.
The new images were captured by Cassini’s imaging cameras on December 2 and 3. In coming days, these cameras will capture images from near closest approach, including closest-ever views of the small moons that orbit outer rings.
“This is it, the beginning of the end of our historic exploration of Saturn,” said Carolyn Porco, Cassini imaging team lead at Space Science Institute in the US.
“Let these images – and those to come – remind you that we have lived a bold and daring adventure around the solar system’s most magnificent planet.”
Launched on October 15, 1997 aboard a Titan IVB/Centaur, Cassini (precisely Cassini–Huygens) is the unmanned robotic spacecraft designed by NASA and ESA to study the planet Saturn and its natural satellites. Cassini is the fourth satellite launched to visit Saturn and the first to enter its orbit. Cassini entered the orbit around Saturn on July 1, 2004, and the lander Huygens was separated from the orbiter on December 25, 2004 to land on Saturn’s moon Titan on January 14, 2005. Landing of Huygens was successful, and it was able to send data back to Earth using Cassini as a relay. Since 2004, Cassini has been orbiting the Saturn system, and has made several discoveries, including presence of liquid methane seas on moon Titan and finding a global ocean within the moon Enceladus. However, it is now running out of fuel. Cassini mission will conclude on September 15, 2017 when it will make a final dive into Saturn’s atmosphere.
Cassini mission is being managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where the orbiter was assembled.
About NASA
Established in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA is the space agency of United States of America and is responsible for the civilian space program and aeronautics/aerospace research. Since being established in 1958, NASA has led US in its space exploration efforts, including the Skylab space station, the Apollo moon-landing mission, and Space Shuttle. NASA also shares its data with various national and international organizations.
In the past 50 years, NASA has carried out a variety of manned and unmanned spaceflight programs. Unmanned programs included launching the first American artificial satellites into Earth orbit, sending scientific probes to different planets such as Mars and Venus, and others. Manned programs included sending the first Americans into low Earth orbit (LEO), accomplishing successful human landing on Moon in 1969 through Apollo program, and developing semi-reusable LEO Space Shuttle and space station.
Currently, NASA is working in association with Russia and European Space Agency to manage the International Space Station. The agency is also overseeing the development of the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, Commercial Crew vehicles, and the Space Launch System.
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