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Space Topics: Cassini-HuygensCassini-Huygens Mission Facts
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Cassini-Huygens in thermal vacuum testing
Cassini-Huygens undergoing thermal vacuum testing at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Note the size of the people -- Cassini-Huygens is roughly the size of a school bus. Credit: NASA / JPL |
Spacecraft mass:
Total: 5,712 kilograms (12,593 pounds)
Huygens probe: 320 kilograms (705 pounds)
Orbiter: 2,125 kilograms (4,685 pounds)
Fuel: 3,267 kilograms (7,203 pounds)
Spacecraft description:
Bus: 6.7 meters (22 feet) high by 4 meters (13 feet)
wide
Huygens Probe: 2.7 meters (8.8 feet) diameter
High-gain antenna: 4 meters (13.1 feet) wide
Magnetometer boom: 11 meters (36.3 feet) long
Mission timeline
For a more detailed timeline and information about the shape and orientation of the orbit, read Cassini’s tour of the Saturn system.
Launch: October 15, 1997
Venus flyby: April 26, 1998, altitude 284 kilometers
(176 miles)
Venus flyby: June 24, 1999, altitude 600 kilometers
(370 miles)
Earth flyby: August 18, 1999, altitude 1,171 kilometers
(727 miles)
Jupiter flyby: December 30, 2000, altitude 9,723,890
kilometers (6,042,145 miles)
Closest Phoebe flyby: June 11, 2004, altitude 2,071 kilometers
(1,287 miles)
Saturn orbit insertion: July 1, 2004, altitude 18,000
kilometers (11,200 miles)
First close Titan flyby (1 of 45): October 26, 2004,
altitude 1,200 kilometers (746 miles)
Huygens separation: December 25, 2004
Huygens atmospheric entry: January 14, 2005, at 09:06
UTC
Huygens landing: January 14, 2005, at 11:36 UTC
Last signal from Huygens heard by Cassini: January 14,
2005, at 13:37 UTC
Closest Enceladus flyby: July 14, 2005, altitude 172 kilometers
(107 miles)
Closest Mimas flyby: August 2, 2005, altitude 62,699
kilometers (38,955 miles)
Closest Pandora flyby: September 5, 2005, altitude 51,888
kilometers (32,238 miles)
Closest Calypso flyby: September 23, 2005, altitude
91,096 kilometers (56,598 miles)
Closest Tethys flyby: September 24, 2005, altitude 1,500
kilometers (932 miles)
Closest Hyperion flyby: September 26, 2005, altitude
514 kilometers (319 miles)
Closest Dione flyby: October 11, 2005, altitude 500
kilometers (311 miles)
Closest Telesto flyby: October 11, 2005, altitude 9,524
kilometers (5,917 miles)
Closest Rhea flyby: November 26, 2005, altitude 500
kilometers (311 miles)
Closest Helene flyby: June 19, 2007, altitude 27,920
kilometers (17,347 miles)
Closest Iapetus flyby: September 10, 2007, altitude
1,229 kilometers (764 miles)
Closest Epimetheus flyby: December 3, 2007, altitude
6,364 kilometers (3,954 miles)
Closest Janus flyby: June 30, 2008, altitude 44,636
kilometers (27,732 miles)
End of primary mission: July 1, 2008
Mission cost
Total: $3.27 billion (of which U.S. contribution is $2.6
billion and European contribution is $660 million)
Pre-launch development: $1.422 billion
Mission operations: $710 million
Tracking: $54 million
Launch vehicle: $422 million
ESA: $550 million (mostly for Huygens probe)
ASI: $160 million (mostly for high-gain antenna)
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