Huygens sur Titan : succès total !
ESA: la page officielle de Huygens, dernières images
NASA-JPL: toutes les images
DISR camera: images brut, raw images
Voici les premières images d'un monde ressemblant à la Terre primitive (atmosphère prébiotique) :
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 centimeters (about 6 inches) (left) and 4 centimeters (about 1.5 inches) (center) across respectively, at a distance of about 85 centimeters (about 33 inches) 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.
It was taken from an altitude of 16.2 kilometers (about 10 miles) with a resolution of approximately 40 meters (about 131 feet) per pixel. It apparently shows short, stubby drainage channels leading to a shoreline.
This is one of the first raw images returned by the European Space Agency's Huygens probe during its successful descent to Titan. It was taken at an altitude of 8 kilometers (about 5 miles) with a resolution of 20 meters (about 65 feet) per pixel. It shows what could be the landing site, with shorelines and boundaries between raised ground and flooded plains.
This raw image was returned by the Descent Imager/Spectral Radiometer camera onboard the European Space Agency's Huygens probe after the probe descended through the atmosphere of Titan. It shows the surface of Titan with ice blocks strewn around. The size and distance of the blocks will be determined when the image is properly processed.
This image was taken on Dec. 11, 2004 by the Cassini spacecraft as it approached Titan for its second close encounter with this intriguing moon. The bright and dark regions near the center of the frame are features on Titan's surface.
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Agecnes spatiales, résultats scientifiques, multi-media:
Conférence de presse, images et audio en direct du centre de l'ESA:
ESA:
- centre des opérations: toutes les infos
- Suivre en direct, Overview of events, videos
- vidéos du lancement de Cassini, animations, simulations
NASA: site de la mission Cassini
NASA-JPL: site mission Cassini-Huygens
News
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swissinfo: Ultime étape du voyage vers Titan
TSR: Des signaux de la plus grande lune de Saturne
space.com : fisrt images, tout le dossier Cassini
techno-sciences.net : premieres photos, l'histoire de la mission Cassini-Huygens
suivre en direct
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Mission:
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http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/huygens_images_050114.html
Originally expected to send perhaps 2.5 hours worth of data to the NASA's Cassini orbiter for later delivery to Earth, Huygens was still sending signals five hours after activation, and researchers said the probe's robust battery could last up to seven hours total.
Huygens has also been sending limited data directly to Earth, where it has been picked up by a network of telescopes. The detailed data about what it found on its way through Titan's thick atmosphere has been sent to NASA's Cassini orbiter overhead.
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http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2005-017
During its two and one-half hour descent to the surface of the moon, it sampled the chemical composition of the atmosphere. The probe continued transmitting data for more than 90 minutes after reaching the surface.
JPL Director Dr. Charles Elachi said, "We congratulate our colleagues at ESA on the splendid performance of the Huygens probe and look forward to the science results of this effort. This has been a great example of international collaboration to explore our solar system."