Huygens
Planned Launch Date: 04 November 2004
Launch Vehicle: Cassini Orbiter
Planned on-orbit mass: 192 Kg
Power System: Batteries of 600 W
The Huygens probe is an atmospheric probe designed to make in situ
observations of the Saturnian satellite Titan. ESA's contribution to the
Cassini mission, Huygens' objectives are to: (1) determine the physical
characteristics (density, pressure, temperature, etc.) of Titan's
atmosphere as a function of height; (2) measure the abundance of
atmospheric constituents; (3) investigate the atmosphere's chemistry and
photochemistry, especially with regard to organic molecules and the
formation and composition of aerosols; (4) characterize the meteorology
of Titan, particularly with respect to cloud physics, lightning
discharges, and general circulation; and, (5) examine the physical
state, topography, and composition of the surface. Similar in design to
the Galileo probe, Huygens is a 1.3 m diameter descent module with a
spherical nose and a conical aft section. A thermal protection aeroshell
surrounds the descent module, decelerating it from 6 Km/s at arrival to
400 m/s in about two minutes and protecting it from the intense heat of
entry. A parachute will then be deployed and the aeroshell jettisoned.
The probe will float down through the atmosphere making measurements.
Instrumentation for the probe will include: an aerosol
collector and pyrolyzer, a descent imager and spectral radiometer, a Doppler
wind experiment, a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer, an atmospheric structure
instrument, and a surface science package.
Other Huygens Images
