JPL Releases Iapetus Flyby Map

by | Dec 31, 2004 | Outer Solar System

The dark terrain of the Cassini Regio on Iapetus will be the imaging target of the Cassini Saturn orbiter as it whisks past the moon at 2 kilometers per second later today. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory has released this map of the image coverage area. The regions Cassini will view at different imaging scales are shown within colored lines. These images were taken by Voyager in 1981; expect Cassini to deliver much better resolution, not only because of its superior optics, but also because of distance; Voyager passed Iapetus at over half a million miles, while Cassini will close to 76,700 miles (123,400 kilometers).

Iapetus coverage map

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In Centauri Dreams, Paul Gilster looks at peer-reviewed research on deep space exploration, with an eye toward interstellar possibilities. For many years this site coordinated its efforts with the Tau Zero Foundation. It now serves as an independent forum for deep space news and ideas. In the logo above, the leftmost star is Alpha Centauri, a triple system closer than any other star, and a primary target for early interstellar probes. To its right is Beta Centauri (not a part of the Alpha Centauri system), with Beta, Gamma, Delta and Epsilon Crucis, stars in the Southern Cross, visible at the far right (image courtesy of Marco Lorenzi).

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