Cassini Significant Events 08/03/11 – 08/09/11

The most recent spacecraft telemetry was acquired on Aug. 8 from the Deep Space Network tracking complex at Goldstone, California. The Cassini spacecraft is in an excellent state of health and all subsystems are operating normally. Information on the present position and speed of the Cassini spacecraft may be found on the "Present Position" page at: http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/presentposition/.

Wednesday, Aug. 3 (DOY 215)

Last week, the Downlink Ground System (DGS) team successfully made the switch from Broadcast to Multicast, the new real-time transfer mechanism for project data coming from the DSN. Data Monitor and Display (DMD) units were updated to receive telemetry via Multicast, and Cassini has now been receiving its telemetry via Multicast since July 27. Dual streams of both Broadcast and Multicast have been running during this time to provide a backup option. However, on Monday, Aug. 15, the Broadcast data flow will be turned off for Cassini, and telemetry will only be delivered via Multicast.

Thursday, Aug. 4 (DOY 216)

Highlights in science data acquisition this week include the following items: an Extreme Ultraviolet/Far Ultraviolet (EUV/FUV) observation completed by the Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph Subsystem (UVIS), which involved slow scans across Saturn's visible hemisphere to form spectral images, a calibration activity for determination of magnetometer sensor offsets, a magnetospheric survey campaign observation performed by the Magnetosphere and Plasma Science (MAPS) instruments, and two Saturn mid-infrared (mid-IR) maps by the Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS), which help determine Saturn's upper troposphere and tropopause temperature.

Friday, Aug. 5 (DOY 217)

Cassini Outreach supported the Juno launch outreach activities at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) by publicizing a star party and viewing tips for the moon, Saturn and Jupiter on the days surrounding the successful Aug. 5th launch.

Saturday, Aug. 6 (DOY 218)

This month's What's Up podcast features Saturn and Jupiter viewing, windy worlds in the solar system, and Cassini and Juno mission news. To explore, visit https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/video/details.php?id=1010.

Sunday, Aug. 7 (DOY 219)

The Navigation Team continued preparations for Orbit Trim Maneuver (OTM) #288 which is scheduled to execute on Aug. 22. OTM-288 will be a Reaction Control Subsystem (RCS) maneuver estimated to be around 90 mm/s in magnitude, and will target to the 5,821 km altitude Titan flyby (T78) on Sept. 12.

Monday, Aug. 8 (DOY 220)

A feature story called "Putting it All Together on Titan" is available on the Cassini web site. It showcases three of Titan's major surface features -- dunes, craters and the enigmatic Xanadu -- in a Radar image from the Cassini spacecraft taken on June 21, 2011.
For images and more information on this subject, link to: https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/12563/putting-it-all-together-on-titan/.

The second VIMS instrument expanded block (IEB) reload mini-sequence for S69 was radiated to the spacecraft today over Goldstone's DSS-15 station. The commands will begin executing around 224/19:30:39 SCET, when VIMS will move this IEB load from spacecraft to instrument memory.

Tuesday, Aug. 9 (DOY 221)

The Cassini Project Scientist gave an in-reach talk today. The presentation provided an update on the Cassini Science results and highlights from the past quarter.

The Science Planning and Sequencing Team (SPST) held another meeting today for instrument teams that would be affected by the proposed alternative T79 timeline being considered if the Cassini Plasma Spectrometer (CAPS) instrument remains off for the Titan 79 flyby. The S71 sequence team and Titan Orbiter Science Team (TOST) representatives from CIRS, VIMS, ISS, UVIS, CAPS and the Radio and Plasma Wave Science (RPWS) instruments were asked to call in to discuss the schedule for the additional product deliveries, the file naming convention, and to address any questions.