Cassini:
Goals: Cassini was designed to explore the Saturnian system from orbit: the planet and its atmosphere, rings and magnetosphere and its moons, particularly Titan and the icy satellites. Cassini also carried Europe's Huygens probe to its rendezvous with Titan.

Accomplishments: After successfully completing the first in-depth, up-close study of Saturn and its realm from orbit, Cassini is on an extended mission to follow up on the many discoveries made during its primary 4-year mission. Among the most surprising discoveries were geysers erupting on Enceladus and the dynamic effects of it and other moons on Saturn's rings. Cassini's observations of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, have given scientists a glimpse of what Earth might have been like before life evolved.

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15 Oct 1997:  Launch 30 Dec 2000:  Jupiter Flyby 1 Jul 2004:  Saturn Orbit Insertion 24 Dec 2004:  Huygens Probe Release Status:  Extended Mission in Progress Show All Dates for Cassini		16 Oct 2009:  The New Shape of Our Solar System 24 Sep 2009:  Water Molecules Found on the Moon 21 Sep 2009:  Saturn's Ring Quirks More Headlines
The spacecraft is named for Giovanni Cassini (1625 - 1712), the European astronomer who discovered four moons of Saturn and a large gap in the planet's rings. Cassini was the first spacecraft to orbit Saturn. Pioneer 11 and Voyagers 1 and 2 were flyby missions. Saturn and its ring system serve as a miniature model for the disc of gas and dust surround the early Sun that formed the planets.		Solar System Bodies: Saturn Cassini Multimedia Gallery ESA's Cassini-Huygens Homepage NSSDC Master Catalog: Cassini