Cassini station ceased to exist, diving into the atmosphere of Saturn

Cassini station ceased to exist, diving into the atmosphere of Saturn

15 September 2017 ended a historic space mission Cassini’s study of Saturn, its rings and moons.

Interplanetary station “Cassini”, named after Italian-French astronomer Giovanni Cassini, was launched two decades ago in 1997. The apparatus used to disperse the gravitational field of the three planets: he twice flew close to Venus and passed near the Earth and Jupiter. To Saturn probe reached on 30 June 2004.

The contribution of Cassini in the database of scientific data about Saturn and its moons is difficult to overestimate. Over 13 years of work in the vicinity of Saturn, the unit transferred to the Earth a huge amount of important information and many great images of this gas giant and its rings.

Alas, the machine had exhausted the fuel supply. Therefore, the specialists of the National Directorate of the USA on Aeronautics and research of space administration (NASA) decided to complete the scientific program Cassini.

On 15 September the unit made a dive into the gas giant’s atmosphere. Dive station were transmitted to Earth science information, which now have to explore carefully. Scientists hope to obtain new data about the planet’s atmosphere and its composition.

Well, it only remains to say farewell to Cassini.

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