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Bruce Murray Space Image Library

Cassini over Saturn's northern hemisphere

Cassini over Saturn's northern hemisphere
Cassini over Saturn's northern hemisphere This illustration shows Cassini above Saturn's northern hemisphere prior to making one of its Grand Finale dives. During Cassini's Grand Finale, the spacecraft made 22 orbits around Saturn that carry the spacecraft over the planet's north before diving between Saturn and its rings. At the conclusion of this final set of daring orbits, the spacecraft plunged into Saturn's atmosphere, ending its mission on 15 September 2017.