Format:
Online-Ressource (xxii, 409 S.)
,
Ill.
Edition:
Online-Ausg. Springer eBook Collection. Physics and Astronomy
ISBN:
9783319076089
Series Statement:
Springer Praxis Books
Content:
Cassini-Huygens was the most ambitious and successful space journey ever launched to the outer Solar System. This book examines all aspects of the journey: its conception and planning; the lengthy political processes needed to make it a reality; the engineering and development required to build the spacecraft; its 2.2-billion mile journey from Earth to the Ringed Planet; and the amazing discoveries from the mission. The author traces how the visions of a few brilliant scientists matured, gained popularity, and eventually became a reality. Innovative technical leaps were necessary to assemble such a multifaceted spacecraft and reliably operate it while it orbited a planet so far from our own. The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft design evolved from other deep space efforts, most notably the Galileo mission to Jupiter, enabling the voluminous, paradigm-shifting scientific data collected by the spacecraft. Some of these discoveries are absolute gems. A small satellite that scientists once thought of as a dead piece of rock turned out to contain a warm underground sea that could conceivably harbor life. And we now know that hiding under the mist of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, is a world with lakes, fluvial channels, and dunes hauntingly reminiscent of those on our own planet, except that on Titan, it’s not water that fills those lakes but hydrocarbons. These and other breakthroughs illustrate why the Cassini-Huygens mission will be remembered as one of greatest voyages of discovery ever made
Note:
Description based upon print version of record
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Author's preface; WHO THIS BOOK IS WRITTEN FOR?; CASSINI AND HUYGENS: RENAISSANCE MEN; EXAMPLES OF WHAT THE MISSION ACHIEVED; Science returns and engineering achievements; Technological benefits from the mission; Cassini-Huygens' partnership with academic research institutions; Maintaining a unique R&D capability; International cooperation; European contributions; THEMES EXPLORED IN THIS BOOK; Issues of risk; Influence of previous missions; Adaptability to unforeseen problems; Cross-border challenges; DATA SOURCES USED FOR THIS BOOK; OVERVIEW OF THE BOOK'S PARTS AND CHAPTERS
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REFERENCESContents; Part I: Creating a new expedition to Saturn; 1: Conceiving and funding the mission; 1.1 THE PATH TO CASSINI-HUYGENS; 1.1.1 Early work on outer planet missions; 1.1.1.1 The Space Science Board's 1975 report; 1.1.1.2 The Saturn orbiter/dual probe study; 1.1.1.3 The Saturn system conference; 1.1.1.4 The Martin Marietta Titan probe study; 1.1.2 The Voyager missions; 1.1.3 The Horizon2000 programme; 1.1.4 A special collaboration campaign for the Saturn mission; 1.1.5 The International Solar Polar Mission; 1.1.6 The Gautier-Ip proposal to ESA
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1.1.7 NASA's reaction to an international Saturn mission concept1.1.8 The Joint Working Group and the ESA-NASA study; 1.1.9 Threats to U.S. leadership in space; 1.1.10 The Paine Commission report; 1.1.11 Sally Ride's report; 1.1.12 The Cassini Phase A study; 1.1.13 What scientists hoped to learn from the Saturn mission; 1.2 PARTNERING WITH EUROPE; 1.3 CONGRESSIONAL NEGOTIATIONS; 1.3.1 House of Representatives actions: H.R. 1759; 1.3.2 Senate actions: S. 916; 1.3.3 The cost containment requirement; 1.3.4 The House Response to S. 916; REFERENCES
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2: Building an international partnership and preventing mission cancellation2.1 NASA-ESA-ASI MISSION PLANNING ACTIVITIES; 2.1.1 The ESA memorandum of understanding; 2.1.2 The ASI memorandum of understanding; 2.2 NINETEEN-NINETIES IMPACTS OF CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET REDUCTIONS AND THE THREAT OF MISSION CANCELLATION; 2.2.1 The importance of the SRMU program; 2.2.2 Challenges to CRAF/Cassini; 2.2.3 The need for downscoping; 2.2.3.1 An omen of things to come?; 2.3 CHANGE OF ADMINISTRATOR: GOLDIN REPLACES TRULY; 2.3.1 Dan Goldin's position on the Cassini-Huygens mission; 2.3.1.1 SSB/COMPLEX's position
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2.3.1.2 Stable financial supportREFERENCES; Part II: Designing, fabricating, and integrating the Cassini-Huygens space vessel; 3: Constructing the Cassini Orbiter; 3.1 FROM GALILEO TO CASSINI-HUYGENS; 3.2 DEVELOPING A MISSION TO SATURN; 3.2.1 The Ulysses, Giotto and Galileo designs considered; 3.2.2 Use a spare Galileo spacecraft for Saturn, or develop a new design?; 3.2.3 The Mark II space platform; 3.2.3.1 New technologies implemented into the Mark II; 3.2.3.1.1 Hemispherical resonator gyros; 3.2.3.1.2 Bipropellant engines using hypergolics; 3.2.3.2 The generic Mark II
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3.2.3.3 Ground support system
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Part I: Creating a New Expedition to SaturnConceiving and Funding the Mission -- Building an International Partnership and Preventing Mission Cancellation -- Part II: Designing, Fabricating, and Integrating the Cassini-Huygens Space Vessel -- Constructing the Cassini Orbiter -- The Titan Huygens Probe -- Integrating the Cassini Orbiter, Huygens Probe, and Titan/Centaur Launch Vehicle -- Using Plutonium to Run a Spacecraft -- Part III: From Earth to Saturn -- The Interplanetary Journey -- How a Few People Can Make a Big Difference: The Doppler Shift Problem That Nearly Ended the Huygens Mission -- The Huygens Titan Probe Mission -- The Saturn Tour: Decision-Making Processes, Trajectory Design, and Changes of Management -- Part IV: A Great Natural Laboratory -- The Mother Planet and its Magnetosphere -- The Ring System -- The Icy Moons -- Titan Observations by the Cassini Orbiter -- Conclusions -- Appendix: Breakdown of Mission Costs.
Additional Edition:
ISBN 9783319076072
Additional Edition:
Druckausg. Meltzer, Michael, 1946 - 2015 The Cassini-Huygens visit to Saturn Cham : Springer, 2015 ISBN 9783319076072
Language:
English
Subjects:
Physics
Keywords:
Raumfahrt
DOI:
10.1007/978-3-319-07608-9