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Cassini Update - September 10, 2004



 
 
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Old September 14th 04, 07:52 PM
Ron
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Default Cassini Update - September 10, 2004

Cassini Significant Events
for 09/01/04 - 09/08/04

The most recent spacecraft telemetry was acquired from the Goldstone
tracking station on Wednesday, September 8. The Cassini spacecraft is in an
excellent state of health and is operating normally. Information on the
present position and speed of the Cassini spacecraft may be found on the
"Present Position" web page located at
http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/operation...t-position.cfm .

Science activities this week included optical remote sensing (ORS) scans and
movies of Saturn's south pole to observe waves and storms at southern
latitudes, ultraviolet mosaics of Saturn's magnetosphere, and mosaics of the
rings and Saturn's south pole. The Magnetospheric and plasma science (MAPS)
instruments continue observations of the solar wind, and the Cassini Plasma
Spectrometer (CAPS) performed a solar wind beam calibration.

Additional on-board activities included the successful uplink and execution
of an Ion and Neutral Mass Spectrometer flight software (FSW) checkout
mini-sequence, uplink and execution of a file for CAPS that will run for
five days containing time-of-flight setting changes for solar wind
calibrations, Orbital Trim Maneuver-3 (OTM), and uplink of an Imaging
Science Subsystem (ISS) FSW patch. The memory patch will alter the response
to a 'machine error' to be such that operations are not halted. The patch
was tested on the ISS test bed and in the Integrated Test Laboratory (ITL).
Unless a power cycle occurs, no further action is needed until a new version
of the FSW is ready next year.

OTM-3, the periapsis raise cleanup maneuver, was successfully completed on
the spacecraft on September 7. A "quick look" immediately after the
maneuver showed the burn duration was 3.6 sec, giving a delta-V of 0.49
meters per second. This was the shortest duration main engine maneuver
performed to date.

As with OTM-2, a special ranging procedure was used during this maneuver.
The transmitter was left on and ranging disabled until the spacecraft came
back to Earth-point. A Magellan acquisition (MAQ) was performed while the
transmitter was still on. This was done in order to obtain range points
after the maneuver as well as before.

ACS FSW version 8.7.1 end-to-end testing in the ITL was completed this week.
The test exercised the uplink and checkout of the Probe and Tour mission
flight software that will execute onboard the spacecraft starting September
28.

The European Space Operations Center (ESOC) conducted a Huygens Probe
Operations Center (HPOC) Readiness Review on September 2. HPOC is located at
the ESOC facility in Darmstadt, Germany. The review board was composed of
members of the Cassini-Huygens Project and ESOC and European Space Agency
personnel. The board was unanimous in its conclusions that HPOC was well
prepared to support the Huygens mission and that preparations for the
science teams were appropriate.

Preliminary and Official port 2 deliveries were made this week for the
Science Operations Plan (SOP) Implementation process for tour sequences
S35/S36. The team files were merged and a report was delivered identifying
any issues or problems. A waiver approval meeting was also held in support
of this process.

The Project Briefing and Waiver Disposition meeting was held as part of the
SOP Update process for S06. This process completed on Friday, September 3
with a handoff package delivered to the Uplink Operations Team.

The Aftermarket processes for S08 and S09 completed this week. SOP Update
will begin on September 20 for S08, and on September 23 for S09.

A presentation was given on Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph ring science
results at the weekly Science Planning Tour Science Talk.

Development for S04 concluded this week with the publication of the final
sequence products for review, Command Approval Meetings held for 16
Instrument Expanded Block (IEB) load files, the background sequence, and
three additional files, and the uplink of 7 of the 16 IEB files. This
sequence goes active on the spacecraft on Saturday.

A delivery coordination meeting was held for Spacecraft Operations Office
ground software tools Kinematic Prediction Tool 10.3.6 and Inertial Vector
Propagator 10.3.4.

Two new press releases have appeared on the Cassini Web Site. One gives the
details of the discovery of one small body, possibly two, orbiting in the F
ring region, and a ring of material associated with Saturn's moon Atlas. The
other gives information on data taken by the Composite Infrared Spectrometer
while entering Saturn's orbit showing the cool and relatively warm regions
of the rings.

For the most recent Cassini information, press releases, and images, go to
http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov .

The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European
Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a
division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the
Cassini-Huygens mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington,
D.C. JPL designed, developed and assembled the Cassini orbiter.
 




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