Cassini at Saturn - by David M Harland (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Cassini at Saturn - Huygens Results brings the story of the Cassini-Huygens mission and their joint exploration of the Saturnian system right up to date. Cassini entered orbit around Saturn on July 1, 2004. Here the author reports 8 months of scientific data available for review, including the most spectacular images of Saturn, its rings and satellites ever obtained by a space mission. The book contains a 16-page colour section, with a selection of the most stunning early images. The Huygens craft will be released by Cassini in December 2004 and should parachute through the clouds of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, in January 2005. David Harland tells the exciting story of the this craft's journey to the surface of one of the most enigmatic bodies on the Solar System, the only moon to have a dense atmosphere and possibly lakes of liquid gas at -190°C on its surface. Titan is considered to be an early Earth in deep freeze, possibly with the building blocks of life in its atmosphere. There is great interest in the first results and images of Titan's surface, and this book will be the first to appear with an incisive summary of this groundbreaking material.

From the Back Cover

Cassini At Saturn - Huygens Results brings the story of the Cassini-Huygens mission and their joint exploration of the Saturnian system right up to date. Cassini entered orbit around Saturn June 2004 so this update includes 8 months of scientific data available for review, including the most spectacular images of Saturn, its rings and satellites ever obtained by a space mission. As the Cassini spacecraft approached its destination in spring 2004, the quality of the images already being returned by the spacecraft clearly demonstrated the spectacular nature of the close-range views that will be obtained. The book contains a 16-page colour section, comprising a carefully chosen selection of the most stunning images to be released during the spacecraft's initial period of operation.

The Huygens craft, released by Cassini, parachuted through the clouds of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, in January 2005. David Harland tells the exciting story of the this craft's journey to the surface of one of the most enigmatic bodies on the Solar System, the only moon to have a dense atmosphere and possibly lakes of liquid gas at -190°C on its surface. Titan is considered to be an early Earth in deep freeze, possibly with the building blocks of life in its atmosphere. There will undoubtedly be enormous interest in the first results and images of Titan's surface, and this book is the first incisive summary of this groundbreaking material.

Review Quotes

From the reviews:

"Noted space historian Harland has updated his book, Mission to Saturn ... writing a fascinating, detailed, and well-developed history of Saturn ... . Written for the intelligent layperson, there is a wealth of detail about the mission, presented in text and extensive sets of figures and photographs, including 16 in spectacular color. There is a 15-page index, four pages of suggested reading, eight pages of facts and figures, two pages of acronyms and 28 pages of notes. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels of readers." (W. E. Howard, Choice, Vol. 45 (1), 2007)

"Cassini at Saturn is essentially a revised version of Harland's earlier book of the same name written before Cassini actually got to Saturn ... . As a reference book it is highly detailed ... . The book has plenty of black and white illustrations ... . As a reference, this book is very useful." (Keith Cooper, Astronomy Now, December, 2007)

"This work is essentially a new, enlarged edition of Harland's earlier book on Cassini, Mission to Saturn ... . this present volume includes a selection of colour images, including spectacular views of Titan from the Huygens probe. This book is an excellent primer on Saturn and the history of humanity's fascination with this spectacular world. It's also a very thorough account of the Cassini mission to date - and the mission is far from over." (David Maclennan, Liftoff, Issue 242, 2007)

"Data from Cassini-Huygens will be analysed and interpreted for years to come - the wait for the definitive results will be a long one, so David Harland has decided to jump right in - and it was a good decision! His book is meticulously researched ... . an excellent and thorough treatment which I am sure I'll use as a reference for a long time to come. It's a 'must' for planetary and space scientists and is even quite reasonably priced!" (John Zarnecki, The Observatory, Vol. 128 (1203), 2008)

About the Author

Saturn, the 'ringed planet', was first inspected close-up by NASA's Pioneer 11 space probe in 1979. The two Voyager spacecraft followed up in 1980 and in 1981, but as 'fly-bys' these craft had only a limited time to study the planet, its rings and its many moons. Now, after a seven-year interplanetary voyage, the Cassini-Huygens mission, which is a joint venture by NASA and Europe, is due to enter orbit around Saturn in July 2004 to make an in depth survey. In December it will release the Huygens probe, which will dive into the clouds of Saturn's largest and most enigmatic moon, Titan, and land on its surface, a month later.

The author's highly successful first book on this topic, 'MISSION TO SATURN - Cassini and the Huygens probe' presented a review of our state of knowledge and looked forward to the arrival of the new spacecraft. Published in September 2002, this book has sold to date 1,090 copies worldwide (726 USA, 364 ROW).