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Cassini Huygens Probe is Ready for Separation
Lucas.clemente writes "According to The Register, the Huygens probe has been given a clean bill of health and is ready for separation. The probe will enter the atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan sometime around Christmas, and is expected to give us some of the most Alien landscape pictures ever taken."
As usual, the /. blurb has the facts wrong. From the article:
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The Huygens probe will detach from Cassini on Christmas day, and drop into orbit around Titan, Saturn's biggest moon. On 15 January 2005 it will begin its descent into Titan's atmosphere
Your dates are correct (I think), but Huygens will not "drop into orbit around" Titan. Instead, Huygens will dive directly into Titan's atmosphere, making a descent that is expected to last a couple of hours before it reaches the surface.
Entering a stable orbit around a single body such as Titan when arriving from afar costs fuel, something Huygens doesn't have very much of (if any at all). Cassini itself spent quite a bit of fuel to enter its orbit around Saturn on 1 July, and will spend more in January after dropping off Huygens simply to get back into the originally planned orbit (the initial phase was revised to cope with the Huygens-Cassini radio communication problem detected a few years ago). Many orbital changes will use gravity assists from Titan and other moons to conserve fuel.
All three suggestions so far are wrong, there is no English equivalent for the Dutch "ui" (or "uy" as it was spelled eons ago) sound. It is a bit like aye in "aye captain", but the mouth is shaped more like it is shaped for the "oh" sound, as in "oh boy", or maybe the "u" in "union". Sorry I can't be clearer than that, I'm not a linguist.
This may be a little late, but the Planetary Society is running an art contest, challenging contestants to create a piece of artwork (including the computer-generated sort) depicting what they think Titan will be like. Entries can be submitted online, and the deadline is this Sunday.
Here's the official text from the contest announcement:
What lies beneath the hazy atmosphere that envelops Saturn's moon, Titan? Is the surface of the moon dotted with seas of liquid ethane? Do icy crags stretch towards a dim orange sky where high noon is only as bright as 1/1000th the level of daylight on Earth? No one knows -- yet.
On January 14, 2005, The European Space Agency's probe Huygens will plummet through the atmosphere to give us our first detailed look at Titan. Before the probe breaks through the clouds to image this mysterious moon, we invite you to imagine what Huygens will find and enter The Planetary Society's art contest.
HOW TO ENTER:
Create an artwork representing what you imagine Titan looks like underneath its haze. Base your perspective on Huygens' journey. Are you viewing the planet from the air after Huygens breaks through the cloud or on the surface after the craft has parachuted to a landing? Did Huygens land on solid ground, or is she floating in an ethane sea? Send us your vision of what lies beneath the veil when you imagine Titan.
Once you've finished your artwork, you can enter the contest online--you don't have to mail your artwork in! Just create it on the computer, or take a digital photo or scan your artwork. If you are not able to enter the contest digitally, you can mail your artwork to us.
CONTEST QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:
Who can enter?
Anyone aged 10 and above may enter. You can enter as a Youth (aged 10-17) or Adult (18 and over).
What kind of art can I create?
You can use any medium to create your artwork, and then show it to us by submitting a digital image through the online entry form.
Or, if you choose, you can mail your art to us. If you mail your art, it cannot be larger than 1 by 11 by 17 inches (2.5 by 28 by 43 cm), and we will not return it to you. Send your entry to: Huygens Art Contest, The Planetary Society, 65 N Catalina Ave., Pasadena, CA 91106, USA. Click here for a donloadable entry form in PDF format.
When does the contest end?
Sunday, November 28, 2004 at 23:59 Pacific time.
What can I win?
Four First Prizes (two Youths, two Adults) and up to twenty Second Prizes will be awarded. A Grand Prize Winner will be chosen from among the First Prize Winners.
The Grand Prize is a trip to Darmstadt, Germany to be on site at ESA's Space Operations Centre for the descent of the Huygens probe!
All Winners' artworks will be displayed at ESA's European Space Operations Centre during the Huygens mission to Titan. All Winners will also receive a Planetary Society Prize Package including one year free Planetary Society membership, a Certificate of Honor, a Cassini-Huygens Mission Patch, an ESA poster, pin, and keychain, and a "Nine Planets" lithograph set.
Two Special Prizes (one Youth and one Adult) will also be awarded for that art most closely resembling any portion of the actual Titan panoramic landscape taken by the Huygens probe during its final stages of descent. These awards will be made within 30 days following the return of the actual Titan image data, and will each consist of a framed and autographed Huygens photo of the Titan landscape.
You're forgetting something......the probe was never primarily designed to land! 99% of its data is supposed to be taken as it falls through the atmosphere to the surface. If it does survive landing then that's just an extra bonus.
- "Hear that?! The percolations are imminent! Cease your ingress!"