2004-06-01 | MISSIONS
Cassini on Course

After a successful trajectory correction maneuver on May 27, Cassini is now on course for its first encounter, Saturn's outermost moon Phoebe, set for June 11. The spacecraft is operating normally and is in excellent health.

Through Cassini, scientists hope to gain a better understanding of Saturn, its famous rings, its magnetosphere, Titan, and its other icy moons. Cassini will begin a four-year prime mission in orbit around Saturn when it arrives July 1. The spacecraft will then release its piggybacked Huygens probe about six months later for descent through Titan's thick atmosphere. The probe could impact in what may be a liquid methane ocean.

Titan is of particular interest to astrobiologists because it is the only known moon in the Solar System with its own atmosphere. Studying the organic chemistry of Titan's atmosphere, which resembles that of early Earth, may help scientists understand the origin of life on our planet. Understanding how life emerges from cosmic and planetary precursors is a primary goal of astrobiology.

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