10-01-2005 06:12									#1
	Huygens Descent Onto Titan Countdown Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

On Friday, 14 January at 10:13 a.m. GMT (5:13 a.m. EST), the NASA/ESA probe Huygens is scheduled to enter Titan's atmosphere. During the next two hours, it will parachute to the surface of Titan, transmitting measurements, pictures and sounds to the Cassini probe orbiting Saturn. The data will later be relayed by Cassini to mission control.

Here's an overview at NASA on the probe mission to Titan.

I also found an interesting article on one of Saturn's other moons, Iapetus. Some very surprising and intriguing images were taken during Cassini's first fly-by of Iapetus on New Year's eve, including the one below. While not visible in this image, it seems a very long mountain ridge is running across parts of the moon at its equator, some of its peaks reaching an altitude of 20 km's (12 miles). It is the most striking geological feature ever seen on any moon.

On Friday during the Titan events, NASA TV Webcast will carry ESA TV, so we can watch the live updates and reactions from mission control.

I won't miss this, it'll be very exciting to follow.

So, note this is Iapetus, not Titan.

Attachment: iapetus.jpg
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	10-01-2005 07:06									#2
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That image looks like a dodgy piece of ray tracing from a few years back.;O)

	10-01-2005 07:30									#3
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If memory serves, Titan will be only the 5th space body to have a man-made object placed on it. Moon, Venus, Mars and some tiny asteroid a couple of years back being the other ones.

Oh and Earth also, I just put my coffee mug down.

	10-01-2005 10:27									#4
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Jupiter technically also (Galileo sent a probe through it)

The commies beat us to mars and venus.

	10-01-2005 18:10									#5
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I am very interested to learn what it underneath the orange clouds of Titan once and for all...

	11-01-2005 09:07									#6
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I knew this would be this month, but it hadn't clicked yet that it would be this week.

	11-01-2005 09:12									#7
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Now all we must do is use out mental powers to prevent intervension by annoying aliens that illegally blow up our probes.

*death to da aliens*

	11-01-2005 09:22									#8
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I am a bit annoyed about the aliens who kept messing with Mars missions, but really aliens are mostly harmless. Especially the ones that are too far away to ever cause us any trouble. Aliens are human only better, you know.

	11-01-2005 13:14									#9
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Less than 72 hours. I am really excited about the huygens. But im also peeved off a bit. There are some factors that they never took into consideration.

1) Titan is hazy and dark, any pictures would more than likely resemble smoggy Soviet Venera-13 pictures from venus. It is unlikely we will see lakes of methane unless were on a shore. Im guessing the huygens will take some excellent panoramics in the sky tho.


2) Huygens has a slight design flaw. Its batteries really suck. We will only get 2 hours worth of data (maybe)out of a 40 million dollar machine.

3) A huygens probe has never worked on another planet. Its a bad probe.

	11-01-2005 14:53									#10
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quote: The commies beat us to mars and venus.

Commies

anyway, have some faith booger. ( no much choice now, is there? )

	11-01-2005 21:21									#11
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Press release:

"I would like to draw your attention to the next programme in the
Stardate series - "Mission to Titan". This will be broadcast LIVE on
BBC2 at 23.30 on Friday 14th January and will feature the latest
images from the Huygens probe, which will have landed on Saturn's
moon, Titan, earlier that day.

As part of the show, we will have a live Question & Answer session
with 3 scientists who have been closely involved in the mission:

Prof John Zarnecki - the Principle Investigator who has dedicated 17
years of his life to work on the instrument that will try to figure
out the characteristics of Titan's surface

Prof Marty Tomasko - The Principle Investigator on the Huygens imaging
team. He's hoping to create fantastic panoramas of Titan's surface,
which has never before been seen, because of the thick orange haze
blanketing the satellite.

Dr. Athena Coustenis - A Titan expert, who also works on the Huygens
atmospheric structure instrument."


Now I know it's very sad to be staying in on a Friday night to watch space probes, but seeing as I got to be up early the next morning anyway I might just do that.

	11-01-2005 23:06									#12
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quote: Originally posted by Azazel quote: The commies beat us to mars and venus. Commies

Man how I miss those commies tho. Back when we had some competition in space. I can name so many USSR missions that were so darn successful using one eigth of the resources NASA had.

Phobos 2

Lunokhod

Venera series was by the far the soviets greatest achievments (other than Sputnik and manned flight). Gave the best look at venus until magellan.

	13-01-2005 13:12									#13
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There's a preliminary press briefing today starting at 10:55 a.m. EST, that's 3:55 p.m. GMT.

Then at 3:00 a.m. EST tomorrow (8:00 a.m. GMT), live coverage will begin and continue throughout Huygens' descent and the reception of the first chunks of data, concluding with another press briefing.

It will all be broadcast on NASA TV Webcast.

Don't miss it!

	13-01-2005 13:16									#14
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quote: Originally posted by booger 2) Huygens has a slight design flaw. Its batteries really suck. We will only get 2 hours worth of data (maybe)out of a 40 million dollar machine.

I read 3 hrs, but yes, that is not much better

quote: 3) A huygens probe has never worked on another planet. Its a bad probe.

Just see this as the first test

	14-01-2005 00:46									#15
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Hasnt a huygens varient tried to land on mars and the moon?

	14-01-2005 00:49									#16
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quote: Originally posted by Provost Harrison I am very interested to learn what it underneath the orange clouds of Titan once and for all...

Rocks, smelly gases and 'goo'

	14-01-2005 01:50									#17
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"Goo" is interesting

	14-01-2005 02:07									#18
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quote: Originally posted by reds4ever Rocks, smelly gases and 'goo'

this is baically all we have on Earth's surface too.

	14-01-2005 02:13									#19
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quote: Originally posted by Geronimo this is baically all we have on Earth's surface too.

Then why in Gods name did we send a probe all the way to look at some more....?

	14-01-2005 02:14									#20
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quote: Originally posted by booger 2) Huygens has a slight design flaw. Its batteries really suck. We will only get 2 hours worth of data (maybe)out of a 40 million dollar machine.

hear hear!

This Huygens probe is the size of a freaken VW Beetle. it could have easily accomodated a 60lb RTG that would have given it power to operate on the surface for years just like the smaller viking landers on mars did. Cassini will be making passes near titan for years to come so if an RTG had been placed on Huygens we would be able to upload and transmit countless additional hours of observation from the thing. I can't believe what a wasted chance it was to equip such a large and heavy lander with a power supply equivalent to a car battery. It's really sad.

-edit whoah, I guess I can't blame the Euro's anymore. JPL just added my question about huygens lack of an RTG (in my recognisably inarticulate prose) to their Huygens lander FAQ and it would appear that a short term power supply was the plan from the start

here's a link to my question and JPL's response

	14-01-2005 02:15									#21
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quote: Originally posted by reds4ever Then why in Gods name did we send a probe all the way to look at some more....?

We earthlings like a variety of rocks and smelly gasses and goo I guess.

	14-01-2005 02:24									#22
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What is annoying me is that astronomers keep saying that Titan's atmosphere is like early earth's, no it isn't. Geologists don't think the early atmosphere was nearly as reducing as we thought back when the Urey-Miller experiment was conducted. The early atmosphere was mostly carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and hydrogen sulfide; not methane, ammoinia, and hydrogen.

	14-01-2005 02:30									#23
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quote: Originally posted by Odin What is annoying me is that astronomers keep saying that Titan's atmosphere is like early earth's, no it isn't. Geologists don't think the early atmosphere was nearly as reducing as we thought back when the Urey-Miller experiment was conducted. The early atmosphere was mostly carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and hydrogen sulfide; not methane, ammoinia, and hydrogen.

that's just nitpicking. Titans atmosphere is by far the most like the early earths of all presently known atmospheres. Certainly it is more like it than earth's current oxidizing atmosphere is.

	14-01-2005 02:37									#24
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quote: Then at 3:00 a.m. EST tomorrow (8:00 a.m. GMT), live coverage will begin and continue throughout Huygens' descent and the reception of the first chunks of data, concluding with another press briefing.

IŽll be sleeping at 5am

	14-01-2005 06:06									#25
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It's also a wee colder.

Methane as a liquid is a bit difficult to do on Earth.

	14-01-2005 10:07									#26
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I have to admit if the ESA got this thing right with the huygens. Its a cosmic hole in one. Its all in there hands now.


Comon ESA.... 5 hours to go...

	14-01-2005 10:23									#27
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Yep, here's hoping everything goes well.

And that maybe all of us here on Earth will be able to understand the Solar System a little bit better with the data we're about to receive in the hours to come.

	14-01-2005 10:28									#28
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ESA!

ESA!

ESA!

	14-01-2005 10:33									#29
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NASA

I wanna see some Rutan probes

	14-01-2005 13:17									#30
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Now it's exactly 2 hours until Huygens will enter Titan's athmosphere.

NASA TV Webcast has started it's full day broadcast of ESA TV, and there's a lot of interesting background info being given on the mission and the basic nature of the Saturn system.

It's kind of strange to hear people reporting on an ongoing space mission in British-English, but I suspect I'll get over it in an hour or so.

Go Huygens!