Ok, foi à boleia dos americanos, mas fomos os primeiros a aterrar em Titan. Estou curioso em relação às fotos... e de certeza que não sou o único.Europe reaches new frontier – Huygens lands on Titan
Artist's impression of Huygens touchdown
14 January 2005
ESA PR 03-2005. Today, after its seven-year journey through the Solar System on board the Cassini spacecraft, ESA’s Huygens probe has successfully descended through the atmosphere of Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, and safely landed on its surface.
The first scientific data arrived at the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt, Germany, this afternoon at 17:19 CET. Huygens is mankind’s first successful attempt to land a probe on another a world in the outer Solar System. “This is a great achievement for Europe and its US partners in this ambitious international endeavour to explore the Saturnian system,” said Jean-Jacques Dordain, ESA’s Director General.
Following its release from the Cassini mothership on 25 December, Huygens reached Titan’s outer atmosphere after 20 days and a 4 million km cruise. The probe started its descent through Titan’s hazy cloud layers from an altitude of about 1270 km at 11:13 CET. During the following three minutes Huygens had to decelerate from 18 000 to 1400 km per hour.
A sequence of parachutes then slowed it down to less than 300 km per hour. At a height of about 160 km the probe’s scientific instruments were exposed to Titan’s atmosphere. At about 120 km, the main parachute was replaced by a smaller one to complete the descent, with an expected touchdown at 13:34 CET. Preliminary data indicate that the probe landed safely, likely on a solid surface.
The probe began transmitting data to Cassini four minutes into its descent and continued to transmit data after landing at least as long as Cassini was above Titan’s horizon. The certainty that Huygens was alive came already at 11:25 CET today, when the Green Bank radio telescope in West Virginia, USA, picked up a faint but unmistakable radio signal from the probe. Radio telescopes on Earth continued to receive this signal well past the expected lifetime of Huygens.
Huygens data, relayed by Cassini, were picked up by NASA’s Deep Space Network and delivered immediately to ESA’s European Space Operation Centre in Darmstadt, Germany, where the scientific analysis is currently taking place.
“Titan was always the target in the Saturn system where the need for ‘ground truth’ from a probe was critical. It is a fascinating world and we are now eagerly awaiting the scientific results,” says Professor David Southwood, Director of ESA’s scientific programmme.
“The Huygens scientists are all delighted. This was worth the long wait,” says Dr Jean-Pierre Lebreton, ESA Huygens Mission Manager. Huygens is expected to provide the first direct and detailed sampling of Titan’s atmospheric chemistry and the first photographs of its hidden surface, and will supply a detailed ‘weather report’.
One of the main reasons for sending Huygens to Titan is that its nitrogen atmosphere, rich in methane, and its surface may contain many chemicals of the kind that existed on the young Earth. Combined with the Cassini observations, Huygens will afford an unprecedented view of Saturn’s mysterious moon.
“Descending through Titan was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and today’s achievement proves that our partnership with ESA was an excellent one,” says Alphonso Diaz, NASA Associate Administrator of Science.
The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperation between NASA, the European Space Agency and ASI, the Italian space agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, is managing the mission for NASA’s Office of Space Science, Washington. JPL designed, developed and assembled the Cassini orbiter.
“The teamwork in Europe and the USA, between scientists, industry and agencies has been extraordinary and has set the foundation for today’s enormous success,” concludes Jean-Jacques Dordain.
Fonte: ESA
Europa chega a Titan
- Pedro
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Europa chega a Titan
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Já tinha aterrado quando fiz o primeiro post ("ESA’s Huygens probe has successfully descended through the atmosphere of Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, and safely landed on its surface") .
Eis a primeira imagem divulgada no site da ESA:
E uma tirada durante a descida, colocada no artigo que assinalou o sucesso da missão no site da CNN:
Não se vê grande coisa, mas... ainda falta chegar as imagens de maior resolução. Duas horas depois de aterrar ainda estava a tirar fotografias e enviar dados... o previsto era só durar 30 minutos na superfície até ficar sem energia.
Eis a primeira imagem divulgada no site da ESA:
E uma tirada durante a descida, colocada no artigo que assinalou o sucesso da missão no site da CNN:
Não se vê grande coisa, mas... ainda falta chegar as imagens de maior resolução. Duas horas depois de aterrar ainda estava a tirar fotografias e enviar dados... o previsto era só durar 30 minutos na superfície até ficar sem energia.
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- Estreante
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- Registado: quinta-feira, 06 janeiro 2005 16:30
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- Pedro
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Provavelmente devem ter tido fortes razões para não os colocar. Se calhar não seriam muito eficazes... aquilo pode não ser a escuridão total, mas também não deve ser o local mais claro do Universo (a Huygens leva uma luz para iluminar o local de aterragem, que se acendeu a algumas centenas de metros do chão). E também há que ver que isto não é propriamente uma sonda igual aos dos Mars Rovers... estamos a falar de algo do tamanho de um Carocha, que provavelmente gasta mais energia do que os painéis lhe poderiam dar.
Já agora, segundo o site da ESA, aqueles blocos que se vêem na foto do solo são blocos de gelo.
Já agora, segundo o site da ESA, aqueles blocos que se vêem na foto do solo são blocos de gelo.
- Pedro
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Primeira imagem a cores de Titan:
This image was returned yesterday, 14 January 2005, by ESA's Huygens probe during its successful descent to land on Titan. This is the coloured view, following processing to add reflection spectra data, gives a better indication of the actual colour of the surface. Initially thought to be rocks or ice blocks, they are more pebble-sized. The two rock-like objects just below the middle of the image are about 15 centimetres (left) and 4 centimetres (centre) across respectively, at a distance of about 85 centimetres from Huygens. The surface is darker than originally expected, consisting of a mixture of water and hydrocarbon ice. There is also evidence of erosion at the base of these objects, indicating possible fluvial activity.
This image was returned yesterday, 14 January 2005, by ESA's Huygens probe during its successful descent to land on Titan. This is the coloured view, following processing to add reflection spectra data, gives a better indication of the actual colour of the surface. Initially thought to be rocks or ice blocks, they are more pebble-sized. The two rock-like objects just below the middle of the image are about 15 centimetres (left) and 4 centimetres (centre) across respectively, at a distance of about 85 centimetres from Huygens. The surface is darker than originally expected, consisting of a mixture of water and hydrocarbon ice. There is also evidence of erosion at the base of these objects, indicating possible fluvial activity.
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Encontrei um pack com as 367 imagens que cada uma das três cameras tirou (dá 1101 imagens independentes). As que estive a ver são raw images e a maioria vai precisar de um tratamento substancial para se poder ver alguma coisa... presumo que seja por isso que a ESA as esteja a divulgar tão lentamente.