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Spacecraft

Cassini

kuh-SEE-nee
Also Known As Cassini-Huygens
Space Probe

A NASA orbiter that studied Saturn, its rings and its moons from 2004 to 2017, carrying the European Huygens probe that it released to land on Titan in 2005, the first landing in the outer solar system. The mission ended deliberately, with Cassini plunged into Saturn's atmosphere to keep the potentially habitable moons Enceladus and Titan free of contamination.

Facts
Spacecraft Type
Robotic planetary orbiter 1
Launch Date
1997-10-15 2
Manufacturer
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), with the Italian Space Agency (ASI) providing key components 2
Status
Retired; deliberately deorbited into Saturn's atmosphere on 15 September 2017. 1
Status
Status (category)
Retired 1
Status (category)
De-Orbited 1
Connections

Associated With

Cassini-Huygens Mission, Missions and Programs

Cassini is the NASA-built Saturn orbiter component of this joint mission.

Source Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Enceladus, Celestial Objects
Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Gravity Assist, Concepts
Saturn, Celestial Objects

Orbited Saturn for thirteen years, from 2004 to 2017.

Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Titan, Celestial Objects

Delivered the Huygens probe to Titan's surface in January 2005.

Source NASA Solar System Exploration

Operated By

NASA, Space Agencies and Companies

Developed and flown with the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency; ESA contributed the Huygens Titan probe.

Source NASA Solar System Exploration
Sources
1. NASA Solar System Exploration
National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationAssociated With: Enceladus, Enceladus page, Overview section, Cassini plume discovery sentence
Quote, Associated With: Enceladus, Enceladus page, Overview section, Cassini plume discovery sentence
In 2005, NASA's Cassini spacecraft discovered that icy water particles and gas gush from the moon's surface at approximately 800 miles per hour (400 meters per second).
View the Source
2. Wikipedia: Cassini-Huygens
View the Source
Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Cassini-Huygens, Objectives section (launch)
    Launched aboard a Titan IV-B with a Centaur D-1T upper stage on October 15, 1997, Cassini was active in space for nearly 20 years
  • Cassini-Huygens, Wikipedia - development section
    NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which developed the orbiter, managed the mission.
  • Cassini-Huygens, Wikipedia - lead section IPA (respelled to ASCII)
    Cassini-Huygens
  • Associated With: Cassini-Huygens Mission, Cassini-Huygens, Overview section
View the Source

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