Cassini to Saturn: The Journey and the Legacy

Dr. Carolyn Porco

Cassini Imaging Central Laboratory for Operations, Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO

Visiting Scholar, UC Berkelely, CA

Twenty-six years ago, the United States and Europe joined hands and set off together on a spectacular adventure. It was a mission named Cassini and it called for a journey across the solar system and into orbit around Saturn, followed by an in-depth, comprehensive look at everything in the Saturn system.

Cassini is now in its 13th year in orbit around Saturn. In that time, it has revealed a planetary system rich in scientific wonder and splendor beyond compare. Processes at work in the early solar system have been found within Saturn’s rings. The planet itself has been a lavish source of meteorological detail, permitting comparison with the Earth’s atmosphere. And environments found on and within its moons give hope of learning the mechanisms by which life has arisen on our own planet.

In this presentation, Carolyn Porco, the leader of Cassini’s imaging team, will guide us through the enchanting realm of Saturn and the mission’s most profound scientific findings, and conclude with the legacy that Cassini will ultimately leave behind.