Cassini at Saturn: The Final Year

The great Cassini spacecraft has a year to go before it plunges into the ringed planet. Project Scientist Linda Spilker returns with more amazing mission science. Emily Lakdawalla introduces us to the wonders of Gaia and its one billion stars. Bruce Betts and Mat Kaplan have their usual good time exploring the current night sky and offering another space trivia contest. Bill Nye is away.

Related Links:

• Cassini Mission to Saturn
• One Year Remains in the Cassini Mission
• Gaia’s First Galaxy Map
• Project Mercury

This week's prizes are a gorgeous Planetary Society rubber asteroid and a 200-point iTelescope.net astronomy account.

This week's question:

Where are the three Deep Space Network facilities?

To submit your answer:

Complete the contest entry form at http://planetary.org/radiocontest or write to us at [email protected] no later than Tuesday, September 27th at 8am Pacific Time. Be sure to include your name and mailing address.

Last week's question:

For spacecraft not headed to or near the Moon, what human mission had the highest apogee (traveled the farthest from Earth)?

Answer:

The answer will be revealed next week.

Question from the week before:

Which Mercury program human missions landed in the Pacific Ocean?

Answer:

Mercury-Atlas 8 and 9 (Sigma 7 and Faith 7) landed in the Pacific Ocean north of the Hawaiian Islands.