Cassini Solstice Mission overview and science results

Abstract

In October 2010, after 6.25 years of successful observations in orbit around Saturn, the Cassini project embarked on a new phase of exploration called the Cassini Solstice Mission. This mission phase not only continues and enhances the goals of the prime mission, but aims to study seasonal-scale phenomena of Saturn's rings, atmosphere, magnetosphere, icy satellites, and Titan. The Saturn year is almost 30 Earth-years long and the eight Earth-years of observations completed so far have spanned the majority of the northern winter/ southern summer through equinox. The northern summer/ southern winter is now approaching and solstice will occur in May 2017; Cassini plans to be in orbit until September of that year. The Solstice Mission features 54 close flybys of Titan, 11 close flybys of Enceladus, 5 close flybys of other icy satellites, and 154 additional orbits of Saturn. The mission will culminate with a spectacular series of orbits that bring Cassini between Saturn's innermost ring and the cloud tops of the planet. This paper provides an overview of the Solstice Mission, systems engineering strategies employed to maintain or improve the science achieved within limited budgets, and highlights exciting science results from the first two years of the Solstice Mission phase to date.