#Cassini #NASA #space #Saturn #Titan #spacecraft
This is what you call a necessary evil. I think.
NASA’s Cassini will start its farewell tour of the Saturn system on April 22, since the spacecraft is running out of fuel, and after five months on September 15, Cassini will spectacularly burn up in Saturn’s crushing atmosphere.
Although, before that, Cassini will be diving through the 1,930 kilometers gap between Saturn and it’s innermost ring. This will allow Cassini to make detailed maps of Saturn’s magnetic and gravitational fields, helping scientists understand what structures lie beneath the planet’s atmosphere and revealing the mechanisms behind Saturn’s mysterious spin.
Cassini arrived at Saturn in 2004, and has usually opted for a safer/distant orbit so that Saturn’s moon can be studies, while also observing Saturn from a distance. However, due to depletion of the fuel and the main mission in its final months, more risks can be taken to carry out observations.
Cassini will be traveling at a speed of 122,000 kmph when it passes between Saturn and its innermost ring (D-ring).
Long Live Cassini! _/_
LiveSid 