Cassini Gets Program Extension Through 2017

Under the US budget proposal for 2011, the NASA/ESA Cassini spacecraft has received a seven-year extension of its mission, running through 2017. The probe, which arrived in Saturn's orbit in 2004, was at first scheduled to be decommissioned in 2008, but its operations were extended until September 2010. Now, President Obama is proposing granting an additional $60 million annually, for seven years, to keep science coming from the amazing orbiter flowing.

Thus far, more than 210,000 images have been beamed back to Earth, and they have helped researchers gain new knowledge on the planet and its many moons. Some of these objects, such as Enceladus and Titan, are among the most peculiar space rocks in the solar system, experts say. The thing about Cassini is that it regularly meets up with each of the planet's most important moons, during events that are referred to as flybys. When these meets take place, the space probe uses its cameras and other scientific instruments to gather rich data sets on the bodies.

“This is a mission that never stops providing us surprising scientific results and showing us eye popping new vistas. The historic traveler's stunning discoveries and images have revolutionized our knowledge of Saturn and its moons,” the NASA Planetary Science Division Director, Jim Green, from the space agency's headquarters, in Washington DC, explains. “The extension presents a unique opportunity to follow seasonal changes of an outer planet system all the way from its winter to its summer. Some of Cassini's most exciting discoveries still lie ahead,” Cassini project scientist Bob Pappalardo, from the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, adds. Experts at JPL manage the Cassini mission, Space reports.

A Saturnine year is roughly equivalent to 30 Earth years. Given that Cassini entered the gas giant's orbit in 2004, and that it will remain there until 2017, it is immediately obvious that, by the end of its mission, it will have observed the planet for an entire season. Needless to say, this is one of the longest such missions carried out anywhere in the solar system. “The spacecraft is doing remarkably well, even as we endure the expected effects of age after logging 2.6 billion miles on its odometer. This extension is important because there is so much still to be learned at Saturn. The planet is full of secrets, and it doesn't give them up easily,” JPL Cassini Program Manager Bob Mitchell concludes.