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The Saturn tour: Decision-making processes, trajectory design, and changes of management

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The Cassini-Huygens Visit to Saturn

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Abstract

This chapter gives details of the Orbiter’s Prime Mission tour, the Cassini Equinox Mission, and the Solstice Mission, including descriptions of Saturn orbits, Titan flybys, close and distant flybys of the other icy satellites, and studies of the ring system. It discusses the process of choosing spacecraft trajectories and assigning research opportunities. Planning and management issues on the Galileo mission to Jupiter are contrasted with those on Cassini-Huygens. The spacecraft’s orbital dynamics are examined, along with how it employed Titan gravity assists for fuel conservation and guidance, and the planetary protection issues pertaining to each body that the Orbiter flew by, especially those that could potentially harbor life. The impact of mission management changes is examined as the operational focus of the project shifted to overseeing the Saturn Tour.

“On Cassini, you generally have one team that is happy and eleven that are not.”

– Bob Mitchell, Cassini-Huygens Program Manager 1

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland, CA, USA

    Michael Meltzer

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  1. Michael Meltzer
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Meltzer, M. (2015). The Saturn tour: Decision-making processes, trajectory design, and changes of management. In: The Cassini-Huygens Visit to Saturn. Springer Praxis Books(). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-07608-9_10

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