Cassini to Fly By Tethys and Titan
- From: baalke@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 26 Jun 2007 09:09:49 -0700
http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/news/events/t33-tethys/index.cfm
Tethys and Titan Flyby - Jun. 27 and 29, 2007
Cassini to Fly By Tethys and Titan
This week, Cassini's travels will bring it by Saturn's moon Tethys
(June
27) and Titan (June 29). Cassini will get a close-up look at the large
crater Odysseus, which is 450 kilometers (280 miles) in diameter, and
Ithaca Chasma, a canyon that is four times as long as Earth's Grand
Canyon. Scientists are studying how this canyon formed and whether
Tethys was active in the past, like Enceladus is currently.
Scientists
will also obtain close-up images of mysterious dark patches on the
moon,
and they will be taking data to understand what the surface is made
of.
Scientists would like to learn if Tethys is only pure water ice, or
if
it's contaminated with dark material rich in organics, like the
material
that covers the dark side of Iapetus.
Two days later Cassini returns to Titan. The spacecraft will
send back radio waves to Earth as our home planet moves behind Titan
(as
seen from Cassini). The goal is to map Titan's shape in order to seek
clues for a subsurface ocean, and to probe the atmosphere of the giant
moon.
Tethys and Titan at a Glance
Tethys Flyby
Jun. 27, 2007 (SCET)
Altitude
18,945 km (11,772 miles)
Titan Flyby
Jun. 29, 2007
Distance
1932 km (1200 miles)
Speed
6.2 km/sec (13,870 mph)
Details
+ Mission Description PDF (1.24 MB)
<http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/products/pdfs/
20070629_titan_mission_description.pdf>
.
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