Voyager Bulletin (Mission Status Report) No. 1-67
Voyager Bulletin (Mission Status Report) No. 1-67
Voyager Bulletin (Mission Status Report) No. 1-67
LETIN
VOYAGER
August 9,1977 No. I
TIISSION PLAN
Less than one month from today, about August 2O, man providing clues to the universe,and thus the mission plan
will begin another journey inro ourer space, searching the includes scrutiny of at least 11 of thesesatellites.An option
heavens for answers to age-old questions, The National exists to propel Voyager 2 on past Saturn to Uranus,seventh
Aeronautics and Space Administration's Voyager project will planet from the sun. Arriving in 1986, Voyagerwould provide
send two advanced Mariner-class spacecraft to fly past the the first closelook at the ringsof Uranusjust discoveredin the
outer planets Jupiter and Saturn, and perhaps, Uranus, early part of.1977.
gathering scientific data on these giants and rheir satellites, as
well as on interplanetary space itself.
If all goes according to schedule, rwo years to the day CURRENT STATUS
after the launch of the Viking Mission ro Mars, the first of two
Failures in the Attitude and Articulation Control
Voyager spacecraft will be catapuhed on a trajectory which
will target it for arrival at Jupiter in April, 1979, with closest Subsystem(AACS) and Flight Data Subsystem(FDS) on the
approach in July. About twelve days after the first launch, a VGR77-Z spacecraft planned to be launched August 20 have
second spacecraft will follow. Due to planetary alignments and resulted in a decision to interchangethe two flight spacecraft.
other trajectory considerations, this second ship, designated First launch is still scheduledfor August 20, the first day
Voyager 1, will overtake the first-launched and arrive at of the 30-day launch window. The VGR77-3 spacecraftwill
Jupiter four months in advance of it, beginning its observatory now take the first launch date. Switching of the two spacecraft
phase in December, 1978. Therefore, rhe first-launched craft can be accomplishedwith minimum risk to the targeted launch
will be designated Voyager 2, as it will become the later arrival date since the VGR77-3 schedulehas alwaysbeen predicated
at the target planets.
on the capability to support the August 2O date.
All testing and checkout of the VGR77-3 spacecraft
The Voyager spacecraft are, unique in many respects.
Their launch will mark the end of an era in space travel, being continues at the EasternTest Range(ETR), Cape Canaveral,
the last planned use of Titan lll/Centaur launch vehicles. With Florida, with the pre-countdowntest scheduledfor August 8.
the advent of the Space Shuttle in the 1980's, spacecraft will Encapsulationin the spacecraftshroudis scheduledfor August
be launched from the Shuttle Orbiter. 9, with mating to the TC-7 Titan/Centaur launch vehicle at
launchpad 41 plannedfor August 11.
Electrical power for the Voyager will be nuclear-fueled, The failed AACS and FDS havebeenreturnedto the Jet
using radioisotope rhermoelectric generarors (RTGs), rather Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena,California. The spare
than the solar panels used by the Mariners and Viking Orbiters. AACS and a repaired FDS may be available for reinstalla-
The Voyagers will travel perhaps 3O times as far from the sun
tion in VGR77-2 at ETR by August 10, which could result in
as man has yet ventured, and at this distance, the solar energy
an encapsulationdate of August 17.
available for caprure and use will be greatly diminished,
Weight and center-of-gravity measurementsconducted
necessitating a more effective power source. RTGs have been
used successfully by Pioneers 10 and 11. June 25 for YGR77-2 and July 16 for VGR77-3 includedthe
gold-plated "Sounds of Earth" recording which will carry
The power usage of the 11 scientific insrrumenrs goodwill messages from man to the universe.
mounted aboard each spacecraft will be lesS than that of a Mission Operations at Pasadenacontinues ro generate
1Oo-watt light bulb. sequencesand perform test and training exercises.The opera-
tional readinesstest was conducted August 2, and the Mission
In the planned 8-l/2 years of the mission, Voyager will Operations Readiness Reiriew was held Augusr 5 and 6.
gather data on perhaps 15 heavenly bodies, the asteroids, and Telemery data flow verification tests are scheduledfor August
interplanetary space. While the primary rargets are the planets 8 and 12, with a full-up operationalreadinesstest involvingall
Jupiter and Saturn, their sarellites are as of grear importance in elementsin a launch configurationscheduledfor August 15.
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J UP I T E R
Jupiter: fifth planet from our sun, largest in our solar
system, named for the mighty god of Roman mythology. The SATURN
giant planet, Jupiter, with its bright red and yellow bandsand Saturn, sixth planet from the sun, has yet to be visited
Great Red Spot, contains98 percentof the matter in the solar by planetary spacecraft.Pioneer 11 will provide the first
system excluding the sun, radiates more than twice the non-telescopiclook at Saturn in September 1979 and 11
amount of energy it receives from the sun, and may be months later, in August 1980, Voyager 1 will ente( rhe
composed of the same primordial constituents as formed the planet''s territory. VrcyagersI and 2 will survey Saturn, its
solar system netly 4,6 billion years ago. rings, and six of its ten known satellites,Mimas, Enceladus,
Five of its 13 or 14 known satellitesare composedof Tethys, Dione, Rhea, and the largest, Titan.
Jovian elements; the outer satellites appear to have been Telescopicobservationsshow that Saturnis also banded,
formed outside the Jovian system and captured by its gravity although not as definitively asJupiter. Most distinctive feature
as they passed the great giant. The density of the satellites of Satum is, of course, its celebratedrings. First observedby
decreaseswith increasingdistancefrom the planet. One, Io, Galileo in 1610, the rings remain an enigma.Various theories
has been discovered to have both an atmosphere and an proppse the composition of t}e four observedrings to be ice,
ionosphere. rock, or metallic particles, ranging in sizefrom four to 30 cm.
Jupiter doesnot have a solid surface.All that is visible to It is certain that the rings are not solid and that they are not a
man is its atmospheric pattern. Since the elements(hydrogen, thick band.
helium, ammonia, methane and water) thus far detected on When the system is viewed edgewise from Earth, the
Jupiter by spectroscopyare colorlessgases,much speculation rings are practically invisible, and have been determined to be
exists as to the causeof the bandsof color and the red spots. about 10 km thick. The broadestring is about 26,000 km
The magnetic field of Jupiter is also intriguing. wide, while the radiusof the entire ring systemis 140,000km.
Voyager's scientific instruments will measurethe limits of rhe Voyager 1 will sail to within 4OOOkm of Titan's surface,
magnetosphereand its interaction with its satellites and the and then will passabout 140,00Okm below Saturn's south
solar wind, which is 25 times weaker at five times farther from pole, about November 13, 1980. As it passesout of the
the sun than is Earth. Saturnian system it will fly through the ring plane, survey the
- The four Galileansatellites,Io, Europa, Ganymede,and north polar arca of the planet, and encounter five more
Callisto, discoveredby Galileo in 1610, are large and brighr satellites.
enough to be seen by the unaided eye, if they wcre nor Voyager 2 will enter Saturn's domain in June 1981,
occluded by the brilliance of Jupiter. Tiny Amalthea, surveying the samesix satellitesand the rings, but from a more
innerinost of the satellites,will also be surveyed. cautious distance. If all goes well, Voyager 2 may use the
Voyager's closest approach to Jupiter will occur in graviry of Saturn to boost itself towards Uranus, and its
March t979, at a distanceof about.280,000 km. As it passes instruments must be in excellent operating condition for
Jupiter on its uek to Saturn, it will also scan rhe Galilean encounter with the seventhplanet of the solar system.
satellitesand Amalthea.
Voyager 2 will encounter the same five satellites before URANUS
its closest approach to the planet itself in luly 1979, from a Uranus was discovered in 1781 by EnglishmanWilliam
distanceof 645,0O0km. Herschel. Nearly two centuries later, in early 1977, lames
Voyager will significandy add to the exploratory data Elliott of Cornell University announcedthe startling discovery
collected by Pioneers 1O and 11, providing a wealth of of Uranian rings. Voyager 2 may provide the first observation
scientific information and laying further ground work for the of the planet by a spacecraft,arriving in January 1986, over
next planetary exploration, Jupiter Orbiter/Probe, to be four years beyond Saturn,
launched in 1981, which will deploy a small probe to tickle Thus, if all goes according to plan, in 8-I/2 years, the
the atmosphere of Jupiter. Voyager's imaging system will Voyager project will have surveyed more than 14 celestial
provide the best pictures.man has ever obtained of Jupiter; bodies and interplanetary spacewith a depth and clarity naner
before achieved.
3
Voyager,l will begin its Jupiter obsentatory phase about December 75, Voyager 2 uill begin hs Jupiter obseruatory pbdse about April 20,
1978,, making its closest approacb dt about 28O,OOO km to tbe 1979. The
.craft utill obsente the same five satellipes on its inboanl leg,
planet's oisible surface about March 5, 1979. It zlill obserue fioe Jouhn befare its closest approacb to the planet at about 645,00O hry,
satellites on its outbound leg,
VOVAGERI
Voyager 7's obsentations of Sdturx will begin in A*gust 1980, uith In June 1981, Voyager 2 will begin obseroations of Satum and tbe same
closest approacb at aboat L4O,OOOkm in Nooember 198O, Voyager I six satellites, Closest apptoach, at aboat 38,(NO km from the outer
wiil pasi througb the ring plmne as it obseroes six Sdturnian satellites, edge oI the rings, will be about Aagast 27, 1981,
(Note: These computer simulations of the Voyager trajectories shou each spacecraft's closest,
apptoach to eacb of tbe tatget bodies, Amalthea, Jupiter's near,est satellite, is nat oisible in tbese
oieax, )
S C H E D Ut E
1977 r978 1979 1940 1981 1942 1983 1984 1985 1986
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MISSION STATUSBULLETIN
VOYAGER
August | 5, 1977 No. 2
C UR R E N T S T A T U S
VGR77-3 (Yoyager 2)
All project elements participated in the practice reinstalled on YGR77-2 following troubleshooting, repair, and
countdown and operational readiness test on August 15 in retest of an intermittent hardware condition affectins the
preparation for the August 20 launch of VGR77-3. The pre- checksum routine.
countdown tests August 13 and 14 included readouts of the
memories of the spacecraft's three on-board, reprogrammable Pyro checks were completed August 13 and the pre-
digital computer systems, the Command Control Subsystem countdown test will be conducted August 16. RTG installation
(CCS), Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystem (AACS), and spacecraftencapsulationis scheduledfor August 1.7.
and Flight Data Subsystem (FDS).
VGR77-2 is scheduled to be launched as soon as ten from JPL from approximately 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.,
PDT,
days after the first launch, but will be available by August 18
to support the first launch if necessary. Tbe program will be uideotaped for replay on
M o n d a y , A u g u s t 2 2 , a t 1 0 : 0 0 a , m . , 1 2 : O On o o n , a n d
An intermittent hardware condition associated with the 2:00 p.m. on the monitors in the main caf'eteria(Bldg.
clock function was detected in the VGP.77-2 AACS telemetry. 167), lower cafeteria (Bldg. 190), and tbe Voyager
Because of this problem, the AACS proof test model (PTM) Project Areas in Bldgs. 230 and 264.
was installed to fly on VGF.77-2. The FDS computer has been
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MISSION STATUSBUIIETIN
YOYAGER
Augusl 22,1977 No.3
VOYAGER 2z S T A T U SS U M T T A R Y
AUGUST 2g^,1977 Voyager2 Canopusacquisitionis plannedfor August 23.
In-flight scienceboom testingwill be conductedon August 24.
lO:29245 o.rfi.' EDT A trajectory correcbonmaneuveris plannedfor August 28.
C U R R E N TS T A T U S
Two years to the day after the launch of the Viking
Mission to Mars, Yoyager 2, aboatd a Titan IIIE/Centaur
launch vehicle, lifted off launch complex 41, Air Force
Eastern Test Range (AFETR), Cape Canaveral, Florida. Lift-
off came at tO:29:45 a.m., EDT, less than five minutes into
the launch window on the first day of the 30-day launch
period. The countdown went smoothly except for a brief
unscheduled hold at launch minus five minutes to determine
the open/closed status of a launch vehicle valve. Minutes after
launch, however, several problems were noted.
Science Boom
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In-flight tests of the boom are scheduled for August 24. (roll and pitch) and C (yaw and roll) were active. The on-board
Further measurements, including temperature, will be computer switched to gyros A (pitch and yaw) and C when the
monitored to further assessthe boom position. The wide angle fault was detected, and then to gyros A and B when the
camera of the imaging subsystem may be.activated to take a apparent fault continued. Indications were that gyro C was not
series of three star-field photographs from which analysts functioning normally; however, since the spacecraft has
could more closely determine the boom and platform stabilized, gyro C appears to be operating normally and the
positions. active pair is once again the B/C combination in use at lift-off.
There are indications that the scan platform has slewed Sun acquisition was achieved at 4:00:30 p.m., EDT,
successfully, but project personnel will assessthe AACS data stabilizing the spacecraft on two axes with the third axis on
before commanding any more movement of the platform roll inertial control. Sun acquisition came nearly 3-112 hours
which supports four of the science instruments. after initiation of the sun search command; the search was
scheduled to take only five minutes.
Data Transmission
Other Subsystems
Data received at earth in the early hours of the flight
were faulty and incomplete, but later transmissions began to Most of the science instruments have been turned on and
relay more reliable data. Analysis of later data indicates that are transmitting data, indicating they are in good condition.
the on-board computers operated flawlessly, switching These are the magnetometer, plasma, photopolarimeter, low
processors and enabling fail-safe routines at the first hint of energy charged particle, planetary radio astronomy, and
trouble. Indications are that the data losses were due to an plasma wave subsystems, Several other instruments are
external event, still to be determined, during the launch phase, expected to be turned on within the next few days.
rather than to a fault in the computer systems.
The radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) boom,
Also during the Titan burn, the spacecraft switched to magnetometer boom, and the two planetary radio astronomy
its second AACS processor, as part of a built-in fail-safe and plasma wave antennaedeployed normally.
routine. Because of this, flight controllers will examine the
contents of the AACS memory to determine if the commands The near-earth testing and calibration of the science
for Canopus acquisition are still intact, prior to commanding instruments scheduled for the first days of the flight may be
the start of Canopus search. Canopus acquisition is scheduled cancelled for Voyager 2 due to the other problems.
for August 23. Once locked on both the sun and the star
Canopus, the spacecraft will be stabilized on three axes in VGR77-2 (Voyager 1)
celestiallock.
VGR77-2 will be de-encapsulatedon Augusr 22 for
The spacecraft has been stable since 3:00 p.m., EDT, inspection of the science boom. This will move the second
August 20, except for a short pitch and yaw disturbance at launch date to September 3.
5:00 a.m,, EDT, August 21. Flight controllers are investigating
possiblecausesof the activity. Three spacecraft were built for the Voyager mission.
One, VGR77-1, was designated the Proof Test Model (PTM)
After spacecraft stabilization, ground controllers played and subjected to extensive testing in simulated deep space con-
back the launch sequence events tape recording from the ditions to test the spacecraft design, construction, and dura-
on-board computer. Examination of this tape is needed to fill bility. VGR77-2 and, -3 were designated flight spacecraft and
the gaps in the earth-received data and to determine the launch subjected to less arduous testing to save them for the real deep
events which might have caused the data losses. space conditions. VGR77-3 became Voyager 2 at lift-off on
August 20.
Gyros
Engineers have conducted several tests on the
During the Titan burn of the launch sequence, an mechanical configuration of the VGR77-1 science boom,
apparent fault was detected in the Attirude and Articulation including torque tests on the microswitch and stiffness tests of
Control Subsystem (AACS) inertial reference unit gyros. The the boom to determine the scan platform settling times at
spacecraft is equipped with three gyros for orientation, each various degreesof deployment.
positioned about two orthogonal axes. Any combination of
two gyros can control the spacecraft. During launch, gyros B
MISSION STATUSBUTLETIN
YOYAGER
Augusr 25 ,1977 No.4
CURRENTSTATUS
Yoyaget 2
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T A U N C H V E H I C T ED E S C R I P T I O N
The Titan/Centaur launch vehicles boosting the Voyager the propulsion module from the mission module. The distance
spacecraft toward the outer planets consist of a Titan III E between the propulsion and mission modules nominally
booster, a Centaur upper stage, and a Ce4taur standard shroud, increasesat a rate of about 0,61 meter (2 feet) per second due
Voyager 2 rode TC-7 , while Voyager 1 wiil ride TC-6. to the spring separation impulse.
The Titan III E booster vehicle consists of two five- The propulsion module is basically an aluminum
segment solid rockets (Stage 0) manufactured by the Chemical cylinder, 99 cm (39 inches) in diameter and 89 cm (35 inches)
Systems Division of United Technologies and the Titan Stage I long, suspendedbelow the mission module by a tubular truss
and II liquid propellant core sections built by Martin Marietta. adapter. The rocket carries 1,039 kg (2,29O pounds) of hydra-
zine propellant, developing an average 68,085 Newtons
The solid rocket propellant is a baked mixture of an (15,300 pounds) thrust and adding a velocity increment of
oxidizer, ammonium perchlorate, and a fuel, powdered about two kilometers per second (4.475 miles per hour).
aluminum. The segments initially develop a combined thrust
of about 5.34 million Newtons (1.2 million pounds).
CENTAUR
STANDARD
The liquid propellant of StagesI and II is Aerozine-50, a SHROUD
DIAM-4.3 m
50-50 mix of hydrazine and unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine
(UDMH) oxidized by nitrogen tetroxide. Stage I develops a
thrust of 2 million Newtons (470,000 pounds) while StageII's
VOYAGER
thrust is 4+5,OOONewtons (1OO,O0O pounds). SPACECRAFT
TITAN
The solid rocket motors are sevenstorieshigh, while the CORE
d
i S T A G EI I
Titan Stage I and II combination which sits between them rises U U
J
eight stories. The Centaur stage adds another three stories. U
= U
With the encapsulated spacecraft (mission module and z u
ts
propulsion moduie) mated to the Centaur, the enrire space U 5
vehicle stands 13 stories or 48.5 meters (159 feet). f,
F
z
The launch profiles for each Voyager require six separate {) z
engine burns, five by the launch vehicle and one by the Z (r
Voyager propulsion module. Each stageis discardedafter com- = = TITAN
z CORE
pleting its burn. The Centaur's first burn injects rhe Centaur S T A GE I
and its payload into a low altitude parking orbit of the earth, =
F
VOYAGER
Augusl 29, 1977 No.5
A sequence commanded the morning of August 26 in an Engineers have installed five coil springs on the science
effort to move the boom to the locked position was aborted boom of VGR77-2 to assureproper deployment and locking.
by the computer command subsystem when the attitude and
articulation control subsystem (AACS) computer falsely indi The Centaur shroud will be iowered over the spacecraft
cated that it might have a probiem. The spacecraft is pro- on August 29, znd post-encapsulationelectrical tests will be
grammed to abort the current sequence and return to celestial conducted in preparation for mating to the TC-6 launch
lock whenever a significant problem is indicated. vehicle at launch comolex 41.
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VOYAGER
September l,1977 No. 6
C UR R E N T S T A T U S
VGR77-2 (Voyager 1)
t A U N C H D A Y A C T I Y I T IE S
Final preparations are proceeding for the launch of
VGR77-2 (Voyager 1) on Labor Day, September 5.YGR77-2 AU JPl, employees, con*actors, and tbeir families
was re-encapsulated in the Centaur standard shroud on August are inuited to participate in the Voyager launcb actiaities
29 znd moved to launch complex 41 August 31 for mating Labor Day, Monday, September 5. Launcb is scbeduled.
with the Centaur. A oractice countdown will be held
for 5:56 a.m., PDT, and the Laboratory facilities will
September 2. open at 5:00 a.m,
The launch window opens at 5:56 a.m., PdT, on Labor Launch actiaities uill be presented oia lizte audio
Day. Voyager 1, as did Voyager 2, will reach a low altitude
from Cape Canaueral, Florida. Tbere will be two sedting
earth parking orbit before the propulsion module gives it its areas aztailable: uon Karman Auditorium (Bldg. 186)
final boost out of the earth's gravity on a trajectory for and the 180-10I conference room, Parking will be attail-
Jupiter. able in the aisitor and adjacent parking lots. Tbe main
cafeteria uill be seraingfrom 4:00 a,m, to 1:30 p.m.
Voyager i will fly a faster trajectory than Yoyager 2,
arriving at Jupiter four months in advance of its sister ship. Launcb eaents cornmentary from Kennedy Space
Voyager 1's Jupiter observatory activities will begin about Center will be broadcast from approximately 5:30 a,m,
December 15, 1978, more than 16 months after launch. to 7:OO d,m., PDT, Spacecraft euents uill be teleoised
C l o s e s ta p p r o a c h t o J u p i t e r w i l l b e a b o u t M a r c h 5 , 1 9 7 9 , a t a from IPL from approximately 7:00 a,m. to 7O:OOa,m.,
distance of 286,000 kilometers (178,000 miles) from the PDT.
visible surface of the planet.
On its outbound leg, Voyager 1 will study five of satellites Mimas, Dione, Enceladus, Tethys, and Rhea, in
Jupiter's 13 or L4 known satellites- Amalthea, Io, Gany- addition to the ciose Titan pass. After Saturn, Voyager 1 will
mede, Europa, and Callisto. Voyager 1 will also pass through cruise out of the solar system.
the Io flux tube - a region of high magneric and plasma inter-
action between Jupiter and Io. At Jupiter, Voyager 1 will be Yoyager 2
4.6 astronomical units (AU) (1 AU = 15O,00O,OOO kilometers
or 93,0O0,000 miles) from earth; radio signalsbetween earth Voyager 2 is in interpianetary cruise, and on September
and the craft will take 38 minutes each way. 2, will be "put to bed" to allow flight controllers to concen-
trate on the second launch. The computer program to be trans-
At Saturn, Voyager 1 will pass within 4,O00 kilometers mitted to the craft on September 2 is a "housekeeping"
(2,5OO miles) of Titan, a Saturnian sateliite of immense sequence designed to automate the ship untii about launch
interest. Saturn observations will begin in August 1980, with plus 30 days, around September 20. Various measurements
closest approach to the planet about November 13, 1980. will be taken during this period, and tape recorded for later
Yoyager 1 will pass about 138,000 kilometers (85,800 miles) playback at earth.
from Saturn's south pole, and its radio signals will trickle
through the rings, giving clues as ro rheir composition. At a All but one of the science instruments have been turned
distance of lO.2 AU, one-way communicarion rime with the on. A brief status report on each science instrument subsystem
spacecraft wiil be 85 minutes. Yoyzger 1 will also study the follows:
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Cosmic Ray Subsystem (CRS). On and operating well. Photopolarimeter Subsystem (PPS). On and operating
Temperatures near perihelion day (closest approach to the sun, normally except for a slight irregularity in analyzer wheel
August 29) were slightly above flight acceptance test limits stepping. Tests to analyze the stepping will be conducted
(2O"C), but the instrument is capable of operating well above during the housekeepingperiod in September and will be tape
this limit and there is no concern. recorded for later playback at earth.
Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS). On to perform Planetary Radio Astronomy (PRA). On and operating
selected sequences and operating well. The wide-angle cameras we1l. In the first days of the flight, plasma subsystem measure-
have returned images of the spacecraft calibration plate and ments gave the first indication that the science boom was
star fields to aid in more accurately determining the science nearly fully deployed.
boom alignment. Wide-angle images of the earth and moon are
planned for September 2, but will be tape recorded for iater
playback. Plasma Subsystem (PLS). On and operating well.
V O Y A G E R S E L E C T E DT R A J E C T O R Y I N F O R M A T I O N ( T Y P I C A L )
L a u n c h. S o l i d R o c k e tM o t o r s ( S R N 4 s ) 00:00:00 0 0 0 0
lgnition
S R M sB u r n o u ta n d C o r eS t a g eI I g n i t i o n 00:01:51 43 23 41 22
S R M sJ e t t i s o n O0:02:02 57 31 46 25
I n j e c t i o ni n t o p a r k i n go r b i t ,
N O T E : T h e s et i m e sa n d d i s t a n c e m
s a y v a r y ,d e p e n d i n go n t h e e x a c tl a u n c hd a y , l a u n c ht i m e , a n d s p a c e c r a fwt e i g h t .
TIISSIONSTATUSBULTETIN
VOYAGER
Septem b er 5, 1977 No. 7
C U R , R E N TS T A T U S
Voyager 1
't.i.
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S f o t u sB u l l e t i n E d i t o r ( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8 Jet PropulsionLaboratory
4 8 0 0O a kG r o v eD r r v e
P a s a d e n aC a l rof r n r a9 1 1 0 3
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The spacecraft rvas stabilized on two axes about two The photopolarimeter instrument has been turned off
hours into the flight when the sensors acquired the Sun, and due to the sticking of the analyzer wheel. The instrument will
achieved three-axis stabilization with Canopus acquisition remain off to protect it from the Sun's rays until the problem
several hours later. canbe analyzed and corrected,
During the launch phase, the launch vehicle's Titan Stage Voyager 2 will travel a total of 1.2 billion kilometers
II burned for a shorter period than planned, necessitatinga (699 million miles) to Jupiter, beginning its observations in
longer first burn by the Centaur stage. The first burn of the April, 1979,20 months after Iaunch.
Centaur stage used about 545 kilograms (1200 pounds) more
fuel than planned. The second Centaur burn, just prior to
injection into the Jupiter trajectory, was shorter due to its
lighter fuel load, and burned about 140 kilograms (310
pounds) more fuel than planned.
VOYAGER
September 14,1977 No. E
C UN R E N TS T A T U S Yoyager 2
Voyager I
Voyager 2, Iaunched August 20, continues in cruise
Voyager l.,,launched September 5, completed its first mode with rgal-time science commands being uplinked (sent to
ffajectory correction maneuver in two parts on September 11 the spacecraft from Earth via S-band) at pre-determined
and13. opportunities.
Both maneuvers included calibration sequences of the A fields and particles instruments calibration sequence
dual frequency communications links, the high-gain antenna S- was performed on September 12. On September 16, the infra-
and X-bands. During these sequences,the 3'7-meter (12-foot) re d i nterferometer spectrometer (IRIS) instrument will
diameter high-gain antenna dish is pointed towards Earth and perform deep space calibrations, and a diagnostic sequencewill
the S-band (about 2295 megahertz) and X-band (about 8418 be performed on the photopolarimeter (PPS) analyzer wheel.
megahertz) radio links are calibrated. Except for this calibra-
tion sequence, the X-band will not be in use during about the Voyager 2's first trajectory correction maneuver is
first 80 days of the mission. Communications during launch, planned for early October, 54 days after launch.
near-Earth and early cruise phase operations are confined to
S-band and the low-gain antenna'
R e c o r d e d, n i s s i o nS t o t u s( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 7 2 3 7
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n O p e r o t i o n s S l o l u s( 2 I 3 ) 3 5 4 - 6 6 6 5
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SpaceAdminrst.ratton Jet PropulsionLaboratory
S t o t u sB u l l e t i n E d i t o r { 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
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Calrfornra
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'UTISSION
STATUSBUI,LETIN
VOYAGER
September 29, 1977 No. 9
Twenty-four days after launch, Voyager I is 2l million Optical navigation data and an Earth-Moon video se-
kilometers (13 million miles) from Earth, cruisingat a velocity quence recorded on September 18 will be played back on
of 35,47Okilometers(22,O4Omiles)per hour. One-waycom- October 7 and 10, as currently scheduled. The playback se-
munication time with the spacecraftis 68 seconds.Sciencecal- quence requires pointing the high-gain antenna toward Earth,
ibration and configurationcommandsare beinguplinked during and must be done in two parts to protect temperature-sensitive
real-timecommandwindows. portions of the spacecraft from the colder temperatures of
space, since some areas of the craft are temporarily shaded
Voyager 2, now forty days into its journey towards from the Sun's rays during the Earth-point maneuver.
Jupiter,Saturn,and possiblyUranus,is 33 million kilometers
(20 million miles) from Earth, cruising at a velocity of The video sequence of the Earth-Moon system includes
30,520kilometersper hour. One-waycommuqicationtime with pictures taken at 18 different pointing positions, photographed
the spacecraftis 1 minute 47 seconds.Sciencecalibrationand with each of three color filters to allow construction of com-
configuration commandsare being uplinked during real-time posite color photographs.
command windows, and a tree switch (circuitry) failure in the
flight data subsystem(FDS) is beinganalyzed.
Science Instruments
These periodic flight path adjustmentsare necessaryto Of the 15 measurements, several are duplicated in the
assureprecisearrival times of the spacecraftat their objectives, remaining 228 measurements, a few can be deduced from com-
'to
maximize sciencedata return. In the caseof Voyager L, its binations of other measurements, others were needed only
exact arrival (closestapproach)at Jupiter (March 5,1979) is during launch, and the remainder may have some effect on per-
crucial to studying the interaction between Jupiter and its formance analysis of other subsystems aboard the spacecraft.
satellite Io.
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space Adminrstratron
S t o t u sB u l l e t i n E d i t o r ( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8 Jet PropulsionLaboratory
4800 Oak GroveDrrve
PasadenaCalrlornra91103
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Trajectory Correction Maneuver Deep Space Network
Yoyager 2's first trajectory correction maneuver is sche- Tracking and communication with the Voyagers from
duled for October 11. Current estimares of the hydrazine fuel injection into the Jupiter trajectories, about one hour afrer
budget indicate there is sufficient fuel to support the mission launch, until the end of the mission, is conducted by the Deep
through a Uranus encounter in 1986, despite the gas utilization SpaceNetwork (DSN).
problems to date.
The DSN consists of nine deep space communications
Science Instruments stations on three continents, the Network Operations Control
Center in the Mission Control and Computing Center at the
Science commands are being sent to Voyager 2 during Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, and NASCOM-pro-
regularly scheduled real-time command windows. Recent com- vided ground communications linking all locations.
mands have included calibrations of the magnetometers and
the fields and particles instruments. One of these magnetom- Each DSN location - at Goldstone, California; Madrid,
eter calibration sequences creates a magnetic field around the Spain; and Canberra, Australia - has one 64-meter (210-
spacecraft by periodically powering a wire which runs the cir- foot) diameter anrenna and two 26-meter (85-foot) diameter
cumference of the high-gain antenna dish. antennas.
The photopolarimeter instrument has been turned off. The three multi-station complexes are strategically lo-
After being freed once, the analyzer wheel is currently stuck cated at widely separated global longitudes so that spacecraft
again in a safe position, and the problem is being analyzed. beyond Earth orbit - and, for the Voyager mission, the plan-
ets Jupiter and Saturn - are seldom if ever out of "view" as
TRACKING all move through space. As the spacecraft move farther from
Earth, they will always be in view, but near Earth, there is a
AND DATA ACQUISITION short daily gap in Voyager 2 tracking data between the
From the moment of launch, the Voyager spacecraft Australian and Spanishstations.
have been under constant surveillance by a world-wide track-
ing and data system which includes elementsof the NASA/Jet Data transmitted from the spacecraft, the downlink, is
Propulsion Laboratory Deep Space Network (DSN), the Air sent at S-band(2295 megaHertz)and X-band (8400 megaHertz)
Force Eastern Test Range (AFETR), and the NASA Space- radio frequencies. Commands and ranging signals sent from
flight Tracking and Data Network (STDN). Earth to the spacecraft,the uplink, are transmitted at S-band
( 2 1 1 3 m e g a H e r t z )o n l y .
Near-Earth Facilities
YOYAGER
October 20, 1977 No. lO
SUftTMARY
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n S t o t u s( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 7 2 3 7
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n O p e r o t i o n sS r o r u s( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 6 6 6 5
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and
SpaceAdministration
S t o t u sB u l l e r i n E d i r o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 9 Jet ftopulsion Laboratory
4800 Oak GroveDrive
Pasadena, Ca|fornia91:1
03
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SPACECRAFT
SUftT'NARY T H EV O Y A G E R S P A C E C R A F T
(Tbis is tbe first in a planned series oJ'brief explandtory
notes on the spacecraft and its instruments.)
VOYAGER 1 Partl-TheBus
Video Playback
The identical Voyager spacecraftwere designedand built
On October 7 and 10, most of an Earth-Moon video by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena,California,
sequencerecorded on September 18 was played back to Earth which also designedand built planetary explorers of Mercury,
from Voyager 1's on-board tape recorder. Portions of the Venus, and Mars, including the Mariners and Viking Orbiters.
sequencehave yet to be transmitted to Earth. The design philosophy, taking into consideration the
unfriendly environment of space, the long duration of the
The photographs, taken at 18 different pointing mission, and the great distances to be traveled, relies heavily
positions with three color filters, have been sent to JPL's on redundancy, reliability, and thermal protection.
Image ProcessingLaboratory for mosaicking and combination
of the sets into color composires. The basic structure of each craft is the bus, a 24.5-
kilogram (54-pound) ten-sided aluminum framework ring with
Trajectory Correction Maneuver 2 ten electronics packaging compartments. The bus is about 45
centimeters (about 1-112 feet) hieh and 179 centimeters
Yoyager 1's second trajectory correction maneuver is (about 6 feet) across.
scheduled for October 29. This maneuver will compensarefor
the impingement-caused undervelocity resulting from the first The bus houses the electronics assemblies,including the
correction on September 11. and 13, as well as Correct small three on-board engineeringcomputing subsystems- the flight
expected launch errors. data subsystem, the computer command subsystem, and the
attitude and articulation control subsystem,
VOYAGER 2
Two faces of the decagonalbus contain thermostatically-
FDS Tree Switch
controlled louvers which regulate the heat radiated from the
An effort to reset the flight data subsystem (FDS) tree main equipment compartment. Top and bottom of the
switch, which failed September 23,was performed on October structure are enclosed with multilayer thermal blankets.
10 and was unsuccessful.The problem is now considered a
permanent hardware failure, and "work around" alternatives The propellant tank, which suppliesfuel to the hydrazine
are under study. thrusters for attitude control and trajectory correction maneu-
vers, occupies the center cavity of the decagon.
.The failure affects 1 5 separate engineering me asure-
ments, an internal FDS measurement, and four redundant
measurements.
Deneb Acquisition
PLANETARYFADIO
ASTRONOI\TIY
AND
Plans to roll the Voyager 2 so that the star tracker uses HIGH-FIELD PLASMAWAVE
MA6NETO[4ETER
the star Deneb as a reference have been made for October 31.
Deneb lies on the opposite side of the spacecraft from
Canopus, and acquiring this star will effectively turn the space-
craft upside down. The benefirs will be to minimize the effect
of the solar pressure which is contributing to the frequent
attitude control thruster firings to steady the ship, and to
(SPACECRAFT SHOWNWITHOUT
ailow an earlier pointing of the high-gain anrenna to the Earth. IHERI\4ALBLANKETSFORCLARITY)
MISSION STATUSBULLETIN
VOYAGER
November 7, 1977 No. lt
Voyager 2
SUTI'NARY
On October 31, Yoyager 2 was rotated to acquire the
Voyager 1 is over 59 mitlion kilometers (36 million
star Deneb as a celestial reference point. This position will
miles) from Earth, steadily closingthe gap betweenitself and
allow earlier Earth-acquisition during highgain antenna Earth-
its sister ship. At the speedof light (300,000 kilometers or
pointing maneuvers required during playbacks and other
186,000 miles per second),one-way communication time is
sequences.
about 3 minutes. The secondtrajectory correction maneuver
Studies of the fuel budget and the effect of acquiring
wasexecutedon October29.
Deneb as a gas-savingstactic are continuing'
Voyager 1's second trajectory correction maneuver,to Observation of the comet would require turning the
"clean-up" small flight p'ath inaccuracies, wa3 executed on spacecraft to a position which would place the cameras too
October 29. Pointing inaccuraciesand undervelocityresulting near a direct iine to the Sun for too long a period, causing
during the first trajectory maneuveron September11 and 13 probable damage to the vidicons.
were accountedfor in the sequence.
Weilheim Tracking
Other recent spacecraft activities have included
magnetometer,photopolarimeter,and plasmainstrument cali- Tracking by the Helios Project at the station in
brations, radio frequency subsystem(RFS) tests, and tests of Weilheim, Germany, continues. Studies aimed at improving the
the RFS trackingloop capacitor. data quality are underway. The unique radial alignment of the
Sun, Helios, Earth, and Voyager will exist for severalmonths.
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n S t o t u s( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 7 2 3 7
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Visit by Prince Charles
The prince pressed the command switch, sending DC-2A,
Prince Charles of Wales visited the Jet Propulsion Voyager's "ranging onl' s6mmmd, through the Australian
Laboratory on October 27, at his request. After viewing full- station and up to the spacecraft.
scale models of the Viking Mars L'ander and the Voyager
spacecraft; and visiting the Mission Control and Computing At the speed of light, the signal reached Voyager 1 in 2%
Center, the prince moved to the Voyager Mission Operations minutes. In another 2/z minutes, acknowledgement that the
area, where he sent a command to Voyager 1, some 46 million spacecraft had received and acted upon the command was
kilometers (29 million miles) distant. received on the ground and immediately printed out on a
telemetry display ar Prince Charles' console.
From the command console, the prince spoke by
telephone with operators of the NASA/JPL Deep Space The DC-2A commands the spacecraft to allow the
Station near Canberra, Austraiia, advising tJrem that the tracking stations of the Deep Space Network to derermine
command had been prepared and determining that the ground precisely the distance, or range, to rhe Voyager by establishing
station transmitter modulation was on and "go for a special closed-loop code between the ground and the
commanding." spacecraft.
P r i n c e C h a r l e sc h e c k s w i t h t r a c k i n g s t a t i o n o p e r a t o r s i n A u s t r a l i a p r i o r P r i n c e C h a r l e s r e a c h e sf o r b u t t o n t o s e n d t h e c o m m a n d 2 9 m i l l i o n
t o s e n d i n g a c o m m a n d t o t h e J u p i t e r - b o u n d V o y a g e r 1 s p a c e c r a f to n miles to Voyager 1. With him at the command console at JPL are
October 27. With the prince in the Voyager Mission Control Center is Michael Devirian (back to camera) Voyager spaceflight operations
JPL Director Dr. Bruce C. Murray. d i r e c t o r , a n d E v e l y n D a v i s ,c o m m a n d c o n s o l eo p e r a t o r , P a r t i a l l y h i d d e n
from view at left is John R. Casani, Voyager project manager, At far
right, JPL Deputy Director C, H. Terhune, Jr.
MISSION STATUSBULTETIN
YOYAGER
November 29, 1977 No. 12
suf,lffiARY
VOYAGER
1
VOYAGER2
Eighty-five days after launch, Voyager 1 is healthy and
operating well. Cruising at 2L kilometers (13 miles) per
second, the craft is over 92 million kilometers (57 million
miles) from Earth. One-way communication time is about 5
minutes6 seconds.
UPDATE
VOYAGER 1
"CATCH-UP". In this computer simulation. the positions of both
Voyager 1 continues its cruise, returning data at 256O spacecraft. Earth, and Mars are plotted at ten-day intervals. The space-
craft crossed the orbit of Mars about November 21 ,and Voyager 1 will
bits per second (bps). Spacecraftactivitiesinclude numerous overtake Voyager 2 in late December, almost 127 million kilomsters
instrument calibrations,including the sun sensors,magnetom- (79 million milesl from Earth.
eters, photopolarimeter,plasma,and periodic engineeringand
sciencecalibrations(PESCALs).
VOYAGER 2
While Voyager t hasa fuel margin of about 25 kilograms
(55 pounds), fuel savingmeasuresare being implementedon
Voyager 2 also continues in cruise mode, returning data
this craft as well as on Voyager 2. On Voyager 1, the sensi-
at 256O bps, with similar spacecraft activities occurring as on
tivity of the sun sensorshas been altered slighdy to reduce
Voyager 1.
propellant consumptioncausedby thruster firings to maintain
the Sun in the sensors'fields of view. Satisfactory progress is being made in analyzing and
solving for spacecraft problems.
All scienceinstrumentsaboard Voyager 1 are in good
condition and operating properly when turned on. Periodic The photopolarimeter (PPS) analyzer wheel remains
slews of the scan platform to various stars and planets con- stuck in position 2, brt resolution of the problem is not
tinue for the photopolarimeterand ultraviolet spectrometer urgent. The apparent cause is a failure in the multiplexer chip
experiments. which selects the wheel position, and is under investigation.
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and
SpaceAdmtnrstration
S t o t u sB u l l e t i n E d i t o r ( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8 Jet PropulsionLaboratory
4800 Oak GroveDrrve
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The low-energy charged particle (LECP) instrument is margin - to support a Uranus encounter in January 1,986.
operating again after being rurned off when a higher than Although some attitude control functions and the trajectory
acceptable temperature was noted on November 2. The over- correction maneuvers use hydrazine at rates greater than pre-
heating appears to correspond with turn-on of the X-band dicted, propellant savings resulted from (or will result from)
antenna, and is under study. A series resistor in the stepper the very stable propulsion module burn which boosted the
motor may have been damaged by the high temperature, but spacecraft out of Earth orbit, rhe accurare Jupiter-bound
the instrument is currently operating properly. trajectory, and the relocation of the post-Jupiter trajectory
correction maneuver to 1 1 days after closest approach
Several strategies have been devised and implemented to
(including a small adjustment in the aiming poinr for the
conserye fuel aboard Voyager 2, and studies indicate that there
Ganymede flyby).
is an adequate supply - in fact a 9-kilogram (2O-pound)
S U B R E FL E C I O F
S U P P O B TT F U S S
SUEBEFLECTOR
ANTENilA{2I
H I G HG A I N X . B A N D
H I G H G A I N A N T E N N AA S S E M B L Y
(This is tbe second in a planned series of bi.ef explanatory secondary reflecting dish is mounted on the trusswork below
notes on the spacecraft and its subsystems,) the two S-band feed horns.
Part 2 - High Gain Antenna Communications during launch, near-Earth, and the
early cruise phases of the mission were confined to the S-band
At first glance, Voyager's high-gain antenna dish is the
and lowgain anrenna. After the first 80 days of the mission,
most prominent feature of the spacecraft - in fact, a VIV
all communications - both S-band and X-band - are via the
could park under its 3.66-meter (I2-foot) diameter white
high-gain antenna, except for periodic science maneuvers and
umbrella.
trajectory correction maneuvers when the low-gain antenna
Supported above the bus by a tubular trusswork, the S-band will be used.
dish is a reflector made of an aluminum honeycomb core
Why all the combinations of S- and X-band? There are
surfaced on both sides with graphite epoxy-laminated
several considerations. For example, different phases of the
skins - a lightweight yet durable combinarion to withstand
mission require different telemetry rates for the returning data;
the stressesof launch and the rigors of deep space.
only the 64-meter antennas of the Deep Space Network can
The highgain antenna assembly includes the sun sensors receive the X-band signals from the spacecraft,
and the lowgain antenna as well. The sun sensors protrude
Table 1 shows the relationships between the spacecraft
through a cutour in the antenna dish.
and Earth-based antenna.
The high-gain antenna is so-called because of its higher
transmitting power, compared with the low-gain antenna. The
high-gain antenna transmits and receives at two frequen-
cies' the lower S-band and the higher X-band, while the low- Table 1. Spacecraft-to-Earth Antenna Relationships
gain antenna rransmits and receivesonly at S-band.
Antenna Trrnsmit Receive
the center of the dish. The S-band feed horns for the high-gain
Earth 2 6 - m e t e r( 6 ) S - b a n d( 2 1 1 5 ! 5 M H z ) S-band(2295 15 ,\'lHz)
and low-gain .anteRnas are mounted back-to-baek on a three- (Deep
VOYAGER
Jqnuclry 5, | 978 No. 13
SUTITIAR.Y tnrssroN HIGHHGHTS
Yoyager 1 now rightfully owns its title, having taken
over the lead from Yoyager 2 about December 15. Voyager 1 Celestial Object Observed
is now farther from both Sun and Earth than Yoyager 2,and
will continue to increase its lead until it is four months ahead An unusual object was detected during standard camera
at Jupiter encounter in early L979. calibrations on December 24. The object appeared to be
Both spacecraft are now more than 1 AU from Earth, approximately 3o meters (98 feet) in length and was made up
and almost 2 AU from the Sun [an AU (astronomical unit) is of nine distinct images in linear sequence trailed by alatger,
the mean distance from the Earth to the Sun, about rectangular unit. Spectral analysis of this object revealed traces
150,000,000 kilometers (93,000,000 miles)]. of red velvet and mammalian cilia. Additionally, the object
Yoyager 1 is about 177 million kilometers (110 million proved to be a suong radio source. Prompt evaluation of
miles) from Earth, travelling with a velocity* of about 27 emitted frequencies revealed the following message: "Ho, Ho,
kilometers (16.7 miles) per second, relative to the Sun. One- Ho . . , and a Merry Christmasto ALL!"
way communications with the spacecraft now take 9 minutes And a Happy New Year, too!
49 seconds.
Voyager 2 is about 174 million kilometers (108 million
miles) from Earth, travelling with a velociry* of about 26
kilometers (16 miles) per second, relative to the Sun. One-way Sequence Verification Tests
communications time is now 9 minutes 4O seconds.
Cruise provides an opportunity for "getting acquainted"
*Beginning with the spacecraft, learning exactly how it will perform and
with this bulletin, the velocitiesgivenwill be heliocentric, react, As part of this "getting to know you" strategy, sequence
that is, with respectto the Sun.'Previously-stated velocitieshavebeen
can verification tests were performed on both spacecraft during
geocentric,or, relativeto the Earth.More meaningfulcomparisons
be madewhen usingthe relativelystationarySun asa referencepoint December.
ratherthan the ever-moving Earth. The purpose of the tests is to serve as a proof of the
computer programs now being written for the planetary
encounter activities. They are a rehearsal for the busy times to
Tbe Night Sky - come.
The sequencesverify expected spacecraft performance in
Amateur astronomers may be interested in tests that cannot be performed on Earth prior to launch. Since
obsertsing tuo of Voyager's goals - Jupiter and the space environment cannot be totally duplicated in Earth
Saturn * nou easily aisible to tbe unaided eye in tbe laboratories, various assumptions were made during design and
nigbt sky. Four more of Voyager's targets - tbe Jouian fabrication of the spacecraft, based on models of spacecraft
satellites Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto - may be performance, During cruise, these models will be verified and
obseraed with the aid of a small telescope. refined.
At the uestern edge of tbe constellation Gemini, December's sequence verification tests concentrated
Jupiter is presently tbe brightest object in the eaening primarily on three areas of interest: microphonics, bore-
sky and is aisible from sunset to sunrise as it moues sighting, and imaging rates.
across tbe sky from edst to uest. It is near Orion's Belt,
an easily-id,entifihble row of tbree stars. On January 21,
Microphonics. Several of the instruments aboard
the giant planet will be oisible about fiae degrees nortb
Yoyager are especially sensitive to the motion and noise
of the full moon.
created by other activities aboard the spacecraft, such as
Saturn rises in the eastern sky in early eoening and
scan platform slewing or the stepper motors on several
remains there until sunrise. Located in tbe constellation
Leo, it is brigbter than a nearby star, Regulus. On instruments, The microphonics tests measure the sensi-
tive instruments' reactions of these interferences so that
January 20, Saturn will be oisible about one degree
nortb of Regulus. the effects can be minimized or, in later data analysis,
obvious reactions to spacecraft noise can be disregarded.
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1
The plasma instrument and infrared interferometer about the roll axis for about 12 hours. The last roll turn was
spectrometer are the most sensitive to motion and noise finished 20 seconds earlier than the computer expected, and a
generated on the spacecraft by various actuations. The "safing" sequence was execured, one of the built-in safery
motion of the scan platform, as well as th€ motors which features of the spacecraft. The turn rolerance will be adjusted
rotate wheels on the photopolarimeter, imaging, and to accommodate the spacecraft performance on future cruise
low-energy charged particle instruments, create the most sciencemaneuvers.
noise. The cruise science maneuver allows caiibration of several
instrumenrs by turning the spacecraft to iook at the entire sky.
The effect of these combined motions and noises cannot
The scan platform instruments are able to map the sky as the
be satisfactorily studied on Earth, as no vacuum chamber
spacecraft roils, and the ultraviolet spectrometer and photo-
has yet totally simulated the vacuum environment of
polarimeter make their observations against the total sky back-
space. Even the low levels of noise in the test area affect
ground. The magnetometers and plasma instrument also obtain
the tests. In addition, the scan platform is difficult to
calibration data.
maneuver on Earth due to the mass of the instruments,
A significanr decrease in sensitivity has been noted on
nearly 9l kilograms (2OOpounds), perched on its tip.
Voyager 2's infrared interferometer spectrometer (IRIS). The
Boresighting. All of the instruments aboard Voyager are condition will be monitored over rhe next few months to
interactive to some degree; that is, their data are supple- detect stabilizarion or any further change. A deep space obser-
mentary and complementary, In particular, the ultra- vation calibration is scheduled for February 8.
violet spectrometer, photopolarimeter, and imaging A degradation of the S-band radio solid-state amplifier in
cameras, all mounted on the scan platform, must be the high power mode has been noted. The amplifier has been
aligned to look at the same position at the same time. switched to the low power mode and is being monitored. The
The boresight tests consist of slewing the scan platform radio system has built-in redundancy, using both the solid-
across the sky to determine if the three instruments state amplifier and a travelling wave tube amplifier.
observe the same star at the same time and are therefore
well-aligned. The tests verify that the alignment is the
same as pre{aunch.
2
TRAVIOLEl
SPECTROMETER
INFRARED
SPECTROMETER
AND RADIOMETER
COSMIC RAY
PHOTOPOTARIMETER
HIGH-GAIN LOW-ENERGY
ANTENNA CHARGEDPARTICLE
(3.7-m DIA)
HYDRAZINE
(16)
THRUSTERS
MICROMETEORIIE
(5)
SHTELD
OPTICAT
CATIERATION
TARGETAND
RADIATOR.
PTANETARY
RADIO
ASTRONOMY AND
HIGH.FIEI.D PLASMAWAVE
MAGNEIOMEIER ANTENNA(2}
RADIOISOTOPE
THERMOELECTRIC
GENERATOR (3)
COUPLE
ATTACHMENT
BOLT
PRESSURE
RELIEF MO/ASTROQUARTZ
DEVICE MULTI-FOILINSULATION
LAMINATED
ENDCRUSH.UP SELF ALIGNINGMOUNT RADIOISOTOPE
HEATSOURCE
4
MISSION STATUSBULLETIN
VOYAGER
Jonuqry 16, l97E No.l4
"We baueput our ships into the
cosmic ocean. The waters are benign
and we baae learned to sail. No longer
dre we bound to our solitary island . . . Earth!"
- Carl Sagan
",,"ii,fr,ii,::";::X'r
you, I look forward uith excitement
to tbe discozteriestbat Voyagerbolds in store for us."
- John Casani
Outer Planets Project Manager
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
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TRAJECTORY CORRECTION
M A N E U V E R ( T C M }1 EARTH
9t11-13n7
/
3 hrs
JUP I I E R
/
I
J - 80 days
(2115nel
J+35days
EARTH-TO-JUPITER MISSION PHASES. While In early February 1979, a four-day movie sequence will
Voyager flies on toward Jupiter, work continues on Earth for record 1.0 revolutions of the planet, photographing the entire
the planetary and satellite encounrers ro come. This sketch of disk,
the mission shows the planned Earth-to-Jupiter phases for
both missions; dates and times given are for Voyager 1, Following the movie phase will be the far encounter
launched September 5, 1977. phases, as the spacecraft zeroes in on the planet, closing to 3O
million kilometers (18.6 million miles) at 30 days out. The far
encounter phases, from early February to early March 1979,
The early cruise phase lasted from post-launch to about
will provide unique observation opportunities for the four
95 days into the flight. One rajectory correction maneuver
largest satellites - Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto - and a
(TCM) and a "clean-up" TCM were executed during the early
crossing of the bow shock of the Jovian magnetosphere, of
cruise phase.
great interest to all of the fields and particles instruments. One
TCM is planned during the far encounter phase.
The cruise phase officially began when the high-gain
antenna was turned toward Earth to remain in that position For Voyager 1, near encounter will be a 39-hour period
for most of the mission. The antenna must point toward Earth packed with close-rangemeasurements by the spacecraft's 11
for communications. During the long cruise phase, nearly a science experiments. On the outbound leg, five Jovian satel-
year, one TCM is planned. lites - Amalthea, Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto will also
receive close-rangescrutiny by the various science instruments.
Passing280,000 kilometers (174,000 miles) from the visible
In December 1978, during the last three days of the
surface of Jupiter, Yoyager'1 will then whip around the back-
cruise phase, the near encounter test (NET) will be performed.
side of the planet, passing out of view of the Earth for a brief
The NET will be an actual performance of the activities
two hours.
scheduled for the period of ciosest approach to Jupiter.
VOYAGER
Februqry 21,1978 No. t5
s u firmARY VOYAGER 2
VOYAGER 1
THE VOYAGER SPACECRAFT
In early January, Voyager 1 completed its first test and
(This is tbe fourtb in a planned series of brief explanatory
calibration of the magnetometers' mechanical flippers. The
magnetometer sensors,located on a 13-meter (43-foot) boom notes on tbe spacecraft and its subsystems.)
to minimize the effects of the spacecraft's own magnetic field,
are flipped end-to-end and calibration measurements are taken. Pan 4 - Cosmic Ray Investigation
The commands for this sequence are sent during real time
rather than incorporated into an automatic computer When cosmic rays, high-energy radiation from outer
sequence, so that the event may be monitored as it happens. space, were discovered less than 7O years ago' they caught the
The filter wheels on the cameras are stepping normaliy attention of the public and fired the imaginations of science
again after being turned off during the December sequence fiction writers, who quickly invented cosmic ray guns, those
verification tests. Diagnostic tests have identified a bad deadly weapons of invading aliens. Although much has been
memory location in the flight data subsystem computer, and a learned about these phenomena in the intervening years, and
spare memory location is now being used and will be used in cosmic ray guns have given way to lasers, phasers, and light
future programs. sabers, many questions remain unanswered, or, as is often the
Two changes have been made in Voyager 1's Earth-to- case in scientific inquiry, some answers have only raised more
questions.
Jupiter mission phase schedule. The second trajectory correc-
tion maneuver, previously scheduled for June 1978, will now Cosmic rays are the most energetic particles found in
be executed in September 1978. ln addition, the start of the nature and are atomic nuclei, primarily protons' and electrons.
They are comprised of all elements known to man. Over
Jupiter Observatory data acquisition has been moved to
certain energy ranges and at certain periods of time, the
January +, 1979 to allow personnel a quiet period over the
winter holidays before the start of intensive activities which elemental content of cosmic rays is similar in proportion to
will span eight months as first one, then the other, spacecraft that of the matter of the solar system. Generally, however,
observesJupiter. their composition varies significandy with energy, indicating
On February 17, Yoyager 1 entered a safing routine that a variety of astrophysical sources and processescontribute
before completing a cruise science maneuver. A complete to their numbers.
cruise maneuver involves 10 360" yaw turns and 24 roll turns, Cosmic rays could pose a hazard tb future space
taking 18 hours to complete, and allows routine calibration of travellers. They can also cause mutation by altering or destroy-
several instruments by looking at the entire sky. ing genes. Although it is unlikely that life on Earth could be
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affected much (our atmosphere shields us), cosmic rays may
play a role in organic evolution in space. Cosmic rays may, as
we search for their origins, tell us much about our sdlar system
and its origins and processes.Cosmic rays, which are material
samples from the galaxy, can tell us much about how stars
synthesize (cook) the elements. In addition, cosmic ray studies ,
have contributed greatly to the field of subnuclear physics,
giving us mesons, hyperon, muons,-positrons, and neutrinos,
long before they were artificially created in atomic acceler-
ators in Earth's laboratories.
Insffument Package
HYDRAZINI
THRUSTERS (I6)
YOYAGER
Morch l,1978 No. 16
SUffTffTARY
A temporary suspension of all but essential spacecraft
activity has been directed so that full attention can be concen-
trated on understanding several new spacecraft problems and
on maintaining schedules in preparation for Jupiter encounrer.
Several problems aboard Yoyager 1 are under investiga-
tion, including the cruise science maneuver abort on February
t7, a d,egradationin sensitiviry of the plasma instrumenr, and a
problem in maneuvering the scan platform. Tiger teams are
currently analyzing the problems to understand them and their
effects.
Yoyager 1 is about 349 million kilometers (217 million
miles) from Earth, nearly six months into irs journey with
almost 1O months to go before the start of Jupiter observa-
tions. One-way communication time is 19 minutes 18 seconds.
One-way communication time with Voyager 2 is 18
minutes 42 seconds, at a distance of nearly 339 million
kilometers (210 million miles) from Earth. Voyager 2's obser- PLASMA INSTRUMENT. The protective covers on the three
vations of Jupiter will begin in about 13 months. apertures of the ailing main detector were removed before
launch, along with the piping which filtered clean cool air into
the instrument before launch. The unaffected side-mounted
detector is in the foreground in this photograph.
UPDATE error is suspected as the cause of the problem, slnce sun sensor
VOYAGER 1 data indicates a difference between expected and actual sun
position after each complete yaw turn.
Cruise Science Maneuver The data from the maneuver is being analyzed in detail
to fully understand the problem and to determine its affect on
A routine cruise maneuver to calibrate several science future operarions.
insnuments by turning the spacecraft to scan the entire sky
was automatically terminated before completion on February Plasma Instrument
17 when the command control subsystem (CCS) computer
entered a failure protection mode. Although apparently unrelated to the events causing the
The cruise maneuver consists of ten complete 360o yaw cruise maneuver abort, a problem in Voyager 1's plasma instru-
turns, followed by sun acquisition, and then 24 complete 360o ment was also detected February 17. The sensitivity of the
roll turns. Apparently, the sun sensors did not find the sun as main cluster of three detectors appears to have dropped sig-
planned after the ten yaw turns, and a pitch and yaw nificantly. Initial indications are that the science objectives can
maneuver, as part of the sun loss routine, was required to still be met at Jupiter; however, during cruise, measurements
regain solar reference. of positive ions at the lower energy levels in interplanetary
The spacecraft normally uses the sun and the star space will be significantly affected. The instrument is designed
Canopus as references to maintain a steady position rather to measure ions in the energy range from 1O to 5950 elect4on
than tumble about in space, except when on-board gyros are volts. The side-mounted detector, positioned at right angles to
commanded to be used as the reference. During the yaw turns, the ailing main cluster (which points toward Earth), is
gyro references were in use, and some form of gyro-induced unaffected and working as planned.
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Scan Platform
VOYAGER 2
SC A N P IA T F OR ffI P h o t o p ol o r i m e t e r
+ x ( P t T c)H
Plqsmo
suN {- +z ( RoLL)
EARTH
-v (YAW)
\
SPACECRAFT AXES
MISSION STATUSBULLETIN
YOYAGER
Mqrch 24, 1978 No. 17
If 's ttovrNc!
VOYAGER 1
Scan Platform
On March 23, a five-horr sequence of four slews moved SCAN PLATFORM. The science scan platform can b€.rotated
the platform through several positions away from the area about two axes to provide precision pointing for its four
where it had stalled, ending at the position most favorable to optical instruments,
remain in should the platform fail to respond at a later date.
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The 103-kiiogram (226-pound) piatform, located ar the High Gain Antenna Solid State Amplifier
end of the 2.3-meter (7.5-foot) boom, provides precision
pointing about two axes for four instruments: the ultraviolet Some possible degradation in the high gain antenna's
spectrometer (UVS), infrared spectrometer and radiometer solid state amplifier has been detected. Because of a similar
(IRIS), photopolarimeter (PPS), and a two-camera imaging problem on Voyager 2 which resulted in switching to the
s y s t e m( l S S ) . backup travelling wave tube amplifier, the situation on
Voyager 1 will be monitored closely.
P hotopolarime ter
J u p i t e r a n d f i v e o f i t s m o o n s : { r a n g i n go u t w a r d f r o m t h e p l a n e t } A m a l t h e a , l o , E u r o p a , G a n y m e d e ,a n d C a l l i s t o .
'NISSION STATUSBULTETIN
YOYAGER
Aprif 7,1978 No. 18
In an effort to pinpoint the cause of the February 23 Normal navigation has depended on two-way Doppler,
stall, tests on ApriJ 4 provided data on platform performance but the receiver failures will probably necessitate use of
during a cooling trend by turning off the scan coil heater for alcernatenavigationtechniques.
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o
gt
:4
o
z
"J""..Wli*,0
HALFWAY THERE, Both spacecraft are now closer to Jupiter than to Earth. As of
Aprif 10, Voyager 1 will be nearly 482 million kilometers (299 million miles) from
Earth and 343 million kilometers (213 million miles) from Jupiter, targeted for closest
approach on March 5, 1979. Voyager 2 witl be 465 million kilometers {289 million
miles) from Earth and 360 million kilometers {223 million miles) from Jupiter on
April 10, headed for a July 9, 1979 rendezvous.
TIISSIONSTATUSBUTLETIN
VOYAGER
April 13, 1978 No. t9
VOYAGER 2 REESTABTISHES
CO'YIftIUNICATIONS
Voyager 2 was successfully commanded early Thursda;r Yoyager 2's week-long emergency began April 5 when
morning using previously untried techniques, after more than a the backup receiver showed evidence that it was having trouble
week of radio problems. accepting commands and the spacecraft's primary radio
receiver failed. In the event the spacecraft does not receive a
command for seven days, it automatically switches to the
Shortly after 3:30 a.m. (PST) Voyager operations senr redundant receiver. That seven-day period was up early Thurs-
the first command to the spacecraft through the Madrid track- day morning, thus allowing a 9-hour sequence of commands to
ing station, Just before 4:30 a,m,, controllers received confir- be sent toYoyager 2.
mation that the command had been received and accepted,It
took almost 27 minutes for the command, travelling at the The apparent failure of the backup receiver's tracking
speed of light, to reach the spacecraft, and another 27 minutes loop capacitor means that the receiver can no longer normally
for the return flight of the command acknowledgement to follow a changing signal frequency. The difficulty in this is
reach Earth. that signals from Earth change in frequency due primarily to
BY JOVE, lT'S JUPITER! This photograph of Jupiter and its four Galilean satellites was taken by Voyager 2 on February 8, 1978, when
the spacecraft was 437 million kilometers (271.5 million miles) from the planet. The picture was taken by Voyager 2's narrow-angle
camera through a blue filter. North is toward the top with the satellite Europa at left. lo, Ganymede and Callisto, in that order, range
outward from the planet to the right. The luzzy spot in Jupiter's southern hemisphere is not the Great Red Spot, but a reseaumark on
the imaging system that was removed by the lmage ProcessingLab (lPL) at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory {JPL). The Galilean satellites
are much dimmer than Jupiter, so the lPLincreased their brightness by computer enhancement to make the planet and satellites equally
visible, When this image was taken. Voyager 2 was threading its way through the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and had almost
1-1/2 Vearsof cruise left before it reaches Jupiter in July 1979. The Voyager project is managed for NASA by JPL, California Institute
of Technology.
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the doppler effect caused by Earth's rotation. Therefore, this load can and should be transmitted. As a minimum,
spacecraft engineers must determine the frequency at which commands to maintain the high-gain antenna pointed at the
the receiver is listening, and then comPute the frequency Earth, which is essential for communications with the space-
at which the Deep Space Station must transmit to send craft, will be transmitted.
a command.
VOYAGER l QUIET
The doppler effect can be observed by standing, for Activity on Voyager t has been quiet as all effort has
example, near a railroad crossing and observing an approaching been concentrated on its sister ship. The photopolarimeter
train, As the train approaches, the pitch of its horn (and thus instrument has been turned off as the analyzer wheel is
the observed frequency) rises until it passesthe observer, and apparently stuck in a manner similar to Voyager 2's, which has
then falls to a lower pitch as the train disappears in the other been freed.
direction.
YOYAGER
ttAY 4, l97E No.2O
SUMMARY the Voyager 1 platform is again moved into the region where it
previously stuck, laboratory tests will be conducted to
Eight months after launch and eight months before determine the effects of the modeled failure.
beginningcloseJupiter observations, Voyager1 is nearly 555
million kilometers (348 million miles) from Earth, at a The Voyager 1 S-band solid state amplifier (SSA),
distancefrom the Sun of about 3.1 AU. Its velocityrelativeto operating in its high power mode, is beginning to exhibit
the Sun is about 19.9 kilometers(I2.4 miles)per second,and degradation characteristics simiiar to those previously seen on
one-waycommunicationtime is 30 minutes45 seconds. Voyager 2. The switch to the S-band traveling wave tube
(TWT) amplifier was accomplishedon May 10.
On May 3, Voyager 2 successfullyperformed a mid-
c ourse correction maneuver to adjust its Jupiter-bound
VOYAGER 2
trajectory. The maneuverwas included in a set of commands
successfullyrelayed to the craft on ApriI 26. Voyager 2 is
On April 26, a regtlar load of the Voyager 2 CCS
nearly 535 million kilometers(332 million miles)from Earth,
computer was accomplished.This Ioad contained the sequence
or about 3.0 AU from the Sun.Itsvelocityrelativeto the Sun
to perform a trajectory correction maneuver on May 3. What
is about 18.8 kilometers(11.7 miles)per second,and one-way
made this load unique was that it was performed flawlessiy,
communicationtime is 29 minutes 52 seconds,Yoyager 2
using new teihniques developed to command the spacecraft in
began its journey about 8-l/2 months ago, and will begin
spite of its one remaining crippled receiver. These techniques
Jupiter observationsin about 11-1l2months.
involve predicting the rest frequency of the spacecraft's
voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), and programming the
UPDATE ground-transmitted frequency to match it within about 50 Hz.
It is fortunate that the 64-meter Deep Space Stations have the
VOYAGER 1 ability to program the uplink frequency, a capability not
previously planned for Voyager operations; the same
A plausible model for the Voyager 1 scan platform capability is now being planned for all stations.
sticking has been developed and is now being tested. The
possible explanation for the sticking invoives a small piece of TCM 82 on May 3 involved a 203-secondburn with a
plastic from the scan actuator fill screw iocking mechanism .615 m/sec velocity change. Early indications show a nominal
resting on one or two teeth of the actuator's final gear. Before maneuver with no problerns.
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MISSION STATUSBULTETIN
VOYAGER
June 27, 1978 No. 2l
VOYAGER 7 took these nanowangle pictures of Jupiter on Ma3t 19 from a distance of 295 million
kilometers (183 million miles or about 2 AU), Tbe original image scale is 29OO kilometers/pixel, still
poorer tban the best Eartb-based pbotograpby, Of the oiginal sixteen narroa-angle images, taken
durtng a tuenty-fh,e rninute intental, tbe Image Processing Laboratory (IPL) at JPL has chosen six, one
in each color, to prcsent in tbb illustration. The six baoe been digitally enlarged and increased in
contrast by the IPL, The sezsenth frame is a aersion of the aiolet image, uthiclt bas been spatially
ftlteted to speciall3r enhance tbe smallest details, Notice that Jupiter's Great Red Spot is prominmt in
pictures taken at sbort uaztelengths (ultraaiolet, aiolet, and blue) but is not cl.early aisible in longer
waztelength (gteen and orange) images. Almost ten months of Eartb-to-Jupiter crfuise remained
on May 19.
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5 U 'VI'NARY The instrument has been returning good science data since
that time.
Voyager 1 is about 679 million kilometers (422 mlllion
miles or abott 4-t/2 AU) distant from Earth, travellingwith a
Pitch Thruster Test
heliocentric velocity of 18 kilometers (11 miles) per second.
One-waycommunicationtime is 37 minutes42 seconds. A test of the pitch thruster impingement was conducted on
Travelling with a heliocentric velocity of 17 kilometers Voyager 1 on June I 5.
(10.5 miles) per second,Voyager 2 is 65I million kilometers The test provided data to refine comparisons of calculated
(405 million miles or abott 4-t/3 AU) from Earth. One-way versus observed impingement values. Voyager 1's first trajec-
light time hasstretchedto 36 minutes 10 seconds. tory correction maneuver last fall indicated that a portion of
the exhaust gas from the thrusters is impeded by a bus supporr
structure. This reduces the desired velocity changes,
UPDATE In this test, the spacecraft's high gain antenna was turned
VOYAGER 1 45" off Earth point in either direction to fire first one and
then the other pitch thruster while pointing at the Earth. The
Scan Platform thrusters are mounted at a 45" angle on either side of the high
gain antenna.
Constraints on Voyager 1's scan platform slewing envelope
All signals but the wide carrier signal were turned off and
have been removed following successful in-flight testing.
Earth receivers were focussed in on the high gain antenna to
Tests on three consecutive days (May 31 through June 2)
track the resulting doppler effect. In a few months, the
moved the platform through the area in which the platform
spacecraft-to-Earth distance will be too great to capfirlre the
hung up in February, with no hangup in the area of concern,
signal with the high-gain antenna pointed that far off the Earth
below 60" azimuth.
line.
Previous tests in March and April, which avoided the
Analysis of the test results is continuing and will be
problem area, indicated no problems in moving the platform
factored into calculations for future maneuvers.
through other regions.
In the latest test, azimuth axis motion was evaluated over
VOYAGER 2
the range of 345" to 10o, and particularly from 53o to 3 1o. No
irregularities were found other than possible slowdown at Backup Mission Load
higher azimuth angles, which is still being analyzed,.
A backup mission sequence was relayed to Voyager 2 on
Plasma Instrument June 23. This computer program is designed to ensure at least
a minimum mission return should communications be lost
Voyager l's plasma instrument is operating normally again through failure of the remaining receiver sometime in the
following a series of tests in mid-May. future.
The sensitivity of the main detector dropped significandy Yoyager 2's primary receiver failed on April 5, leaving the
on February 17. Analysis of the problem indicated an open spacecraft with only one receiver and no recourse should that
circuit in an amplifier, and a series of heating and cooling tests one fail. Early probe missions were equipped with only one
was planned in an effort to restore contact. receiver and carried backup sequencesas safeguards.
On May 16, the replacement heater was turned on, raising The sequence will be stored in the backup cornputer
the temperature of both the modulator and the electronics, command subsystem. It includes operation of all 11 experi-
but no change in science data was observed at that time and ments, including imaging at Saturn but not at Jupiter. The
the heater was turned off. scan platform would move through three positions per planet,
However, minutes prior to the start of the cooling test on as compared to the thousands of positions it wouid assume in
May 18, which would have turned off all heaters, data indi- the normal mission.
cated that the instrument was operating properly, and the The load also includes one traiectory correclion to retarget
cooling test was cancelled pending further analysis. to Saturn after Jupiter encounter in ldy 1979.
MISSION STATUSBUttETIN
VOYAGER
July 25, 1978 No.22
SUMMARY Both spacecraft continue their interplanetary cruises,
with periodic calibrations and tesrs. The gap between them is
widening, as the data clearly show:
Due to the position of the Sun between the Earth and A third correcrion will be for gyro drift compensation. A
the spacecraft, data reception was "ratty" during this period. new command will allow intentional turning of the spacecraft
Voyager 2 moved out of solar conjuncrion on July 24. at a slow rate of speed,independent of the drift compensarion
built into the software.
Voyager's solar conjunction happened to occur during
the largest solar flare activity observed in recent years. In inertial control, spinning gyros provide references which,
by, their nature drift slightly, causing spacecraft turning. The
AACS Patch drift can be measured and corrected. At times, however, con-
trolled slow turning is desirable, as when even the spacecraft
In mid-August, several refinements will be made to the turn rate is too high for the ultraviolet spectrometer to track
attitude and articuiation control subsystem (AACS) of both the planet limb. The new capability will allow independent
spacecraft, control of gyro drift.
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1
THEVOYAGERSPACECRAFT tion of hydrogen. This gas is in the fourth state of
matter called a very high "plasma" (the other three
(This is tbe fiftb in a planned seriesof brief etcplanatorJt
statesare solid, liquid and gas).It travelsat speedsvary-
notes on tbe spacecraftand its subsystems,)
ing from 3OOto 11OOkilometers(185 to 685 miles)per
second. Although of extremely low density (less than
Part 5 - Magnetic Fields Investigation : 1OO particles per cubic centimeter), the plasma per-
The magnetic field of a planet is an externally meates all of interplanetary space and forms the solar
measurable indication of conditions deep within its wind. Becauseof its ionized state, it is an electrically-
interior. Four magnetometersaboard each Voyager will conducting medium in interplanetary space.
gather data on the planetary magnetic fields at Jupiter,
The solar wind is deflected by planetary magnetic
Saturn, and possibly Uranus; the satellites of these
fields and sreams around the obstacle, confining the
planets; solar wind and satellite interactions with these
planet's magnetic field to a limited region of spacecalled
planetary fields; and the interplanetary magnetic field.
the magnetosphere.At Earth, .the magnetosphereis a
long, narrow tail on the far side of the planet (away
r If we are still communicating with the spacecraft
from the Sun). The ion tails of comets (but not the dust
when they passbeyond the orbit of Pluto and out of our
tails) also strearn in the direction of the solar wind flow.
solar system, the instruments may beam back news of
the interstellar medium as well. Well past the orbit of Uranus (at 2OAU), Voyager
will be alert to detect the outer edge of the solar wind,
Voyager's fields and particles investigations, of although this may be as far distant *s 5O AU (7-ll2
which the magnetic fields experiment is one, are comple- billion kilometers or 4-314 billion miles), well beyond
mentary, having overlapping areas of study but each the nominal limits of the mission.
with its own unique methods of observingand reporting
on the samephenomena. The three.dimensionalshape of Jupiter's magneto.
sphere is not well understood. The timing of the
Solar Wind and Magnetospheres Voyager arrivals at Jupiter, four months apart, will allow
concunent measurements of the interplanetarymedium
The magnetometerswill reveal a great deal about near Jupiter and the Jovian magnetosphereitself. Thus,
the interplanetary medium- the thinly scattered changesin characteristicsof the magnetospherecan be
ionized and magnetizedgas within the spacesof our identified as true spatial variations or as temporal ones
solarsystem- which forms the solarwind. induced by changesin the interplanetary medium.
Our Sun is constantly emitting electrically-charged Jupiter's rapid rotation rate (1 Jovian day is about
particles, mosdy protons and electrons,from t}re ioniza- 10 Earth hours) may be a causeof th€ strongly distorted
SOLAR WIND - The outer, least dense region of the Jovian magnetosphere (left) is highly
variable in size, perhaps due to varying pressureof the impinging solar wind (right).
M AGNETIC
F I E L DL I N E
NORTH
POLE
DIPOLE
JUPITER
g
sAIEttlre
onarfrffi k WAKE
FLUX TUBE
PATH
SPACECRAFT
JUPITEF FLUX TUBE AND lO WAKE - The motion of a Galilean satellit€ through the Jovian
environment can produce such interesting geomotrical regions as a "flux tube", where the satellite
interrupts the flow of charged particles along the magnetic field lines, and a "wake" region, which
arisesfrom th€ satellite interference with the co-rotating planetary plasma.
outer magnetosphere. At largedistancesfrom the planet, influence on these radio emissionsthrough its magnetic
the magnetic field lines appearto form a spiral structure, flux tube, which intersects both the plasma around Io
which might be explainedby outward plasmaflow. and the Jovianionosphere.
The interaction betweena satelliteand the Jovian Io is thought to have no internal magneticfield,
magnetospheredependson the propertiesof the satellite although its rocky surface,and that of Europa,should
of the field and
and its ionosphere,on the characteristics havesomemagnetizablematerial.Io is known to havean
particle environment, and on the properties of the atrnosphereand to be a sourceof sodium.
Jovianionosphere.
To isolate the low-field magnetometers from the With the addition of the electronics, the total
spacecraft's own magnetic field as much as possible, the experiment weight is 5.6 kilograms (L2 pounds) and the
instruments are located on a 13-meter (43-foot) boom maximum power requirement is 2.2 watts.
which was carefully packed into an aluminum canister
Principai investigator for the experiment is Dr.
during the launch phase and then extended out to its full
Norman Ness of the Laboratory for Extraterrestrial
length during the parking orbit. This "Asrromasr" type
Physics at NASA'S Goddard Space Flight Center
of boom is indeed an engineering achievement and the
(GSFC), Greenbelt, Maryland. Co-investigators include
longest boom for such purposes ever flown.
Drs. M. H. Acuna, K. W. Behannon, L. F, Burlaga, and
R. P. Lepping, all at GSFC, and F. M. Neubauer at the
One low-field sensor is perched at the tip of the Institut lilr Geopbysik und Meterologie, Tecbnische
boom, while the other is stationed at about the mid- Uniaersitiit, Braunschweg, Federal Republic of Germany.
ii6i;]liii$
*sS fir
&
ti
- .B
9
VOYAGER
September 5, 1978 No. 23
A T M O S P H E R I C C H A N G E S A T J U P I T E R . T h e s e p h o t o s , o n e g r o u n d - b a s e da n d o n e f r o m V o y a g e r l , s h o w t h e d r a m a t i c
changes in the giant planet's dynamic atmosphere in four years, The composite photograph on the left was taken August
19, 1974 with a lSScentimeter (s-foot) reflecting telescope at the Catalina Observatory, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory,
University of Arizona-Tucson. Note the broad, bright band in the southern hemispheric area of the Great Red Spot.
T h e p h o t o o n t h e r i g h t w a s t a k e n w i t h a v i o l e t f i l t e r o n M a y 1 9 . 1 9 7 8 , b y V o y a g e r 1 ' s n a r r o w a n g l e c a m e r a ,a t a d i s t a n c eo f
2 9 5 m i l l i o n k i l o m e t e r s . ( T h e n a r r o w a n g l e a p e r t u r e s i z e i s a b o u t 1 9 c e n t i m e t e r s ,f o c a l l e n g t h i s 1 5 0 0 m i l l i m e t e r s , l T h e
Great Red Spot is now surrounded by only a narrow bright band, flanked by darker bands above and below it, while the
broadest bright band is now in the northern hemisphere, Some Jupiter observations will be retargeted toward the northern
hemisphere to look more closely at the bright band. Red Spot observations will not be affected by these changes.
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n S t o t u s( 2 1 3 13 5 4 - 72 3 7
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Scan Platform
O N E Y E A RI N S P A C E . . .
'
It has been a full year since the Voyagers set off to All constraints on Voyager 1's scan platform slewing
explore the cosmic ocean, and while the sailing has not were removed after testing in late May-early June found no
always been smooth, the ships are currendy healthy and irregularities in moving through the area in which the plat-
functioning well. form hung up in late February.
Calibrations
Propellant Consumption
The major tasks of the months of cruise, however,
have been the numerous tests and calibrations, all aimed at
Propellant consumption continues to be closely
assuring the best possible science return from the
monitored, as Voyager's sailors learn the appetite of the
Encounter periods. The experimenters need to know the
spacecraft. Increased hydrazine usage can be expected
engineering parameters dealing with various measurements,
during maneuvers and tests involving the thrusters, AACS,
to aid later data interpretation. For the scan platform
and trajectory corrections, Actual data from past
instruments, they need to know the sensitivity variation
maneuvers are being used for budget planning for the
across each instrument's field-of-view (FOV), and the exact
mission.
pointing position of each instrument relative to the others
to determine the amount of overlap in their fields-of-view,
This latter point is particularly important to determine the Of an initial 105 kilograms (232 pounds), Voyager 1
region of space or surface of the planet seen by each instru- has used almost 13 kilograms (29 pounds) of hydrazine in
ment relative to the others, so data from the various instru- the past year, with about 92 kilograms (203 pounds)
ments can be correlated. remaining. About 6.4 kilograms (12 pounds) of fuel is
expected to be used from the start of Jupiter observations
Accurate p ointing information is particularly on January 4, 1979 through the end of the first encounter
important for the ultraviolet spectromerer (UVS) in which on April 9, 1979. Eighry percent of the hydrazine usage
the viewing slit is only 0.3 degrees- leaving little margin during the 39 hours of the near encounter phase on March
for error. The UVS will view the Sun as it sets behind the 5 will be to compensate for slews of the science platform,
disks of Jupiter and Saturn, measuring the atmospheric as the craft swivels its instruments frequently to alternate
gases.These solar occultations are high-priority goals of the views of Jupiter and the Galilean sateilites.
mission.
Intensity calibrations are also important rasks for the Yoyager 2 has used about 10 percent of its propel-
UVS and photopolarimeter (PPS) ro determine if their lant, or about 11 kilograms (24 pounds). Ninety-four kilo-
sensitivities remain at pre{aunch laboratory test levels, grams(2O7 pounds) remain.
MISSION STATUSBUttETIN
VOYAGER
October 2, 1978 No. 24
MissionHighlights hours to Jupiter minus 14 hours 50 minutes. The ten-hour
test began at 4 a.m. PDT when the spacecraftwas in view of
Voyager 1 Clears Asteroid Belt; Voyager 2 Close Behind Deep Space Station 14 (64-meter antenna) ar Goldstone,
California.
Voyager 1 successfully cleared the area of the Part 2 of the test excercised several imaging modes
asteroid belt on September8, 1978, and Voyager 2 will planned for contingency or backup during bad weather ar a
complete its passageon October 21.. station. The imaging subsystem was off during this part of
The asteroid belt is a band of rocks and dust 360 the test as the flight data subsysrem computer tested the
million kilometers (223 million miles) wide between the data rates, acquiring at least 3O minutes of data in each
orbits of Mars and Jupiter; its inner edge beginsabout 105 mode. During the test, station handover from Goldstone to
million kilometers (65 million miles) from Earth's orbit. Canberra was accomplished as Earth's rotation moved
Both spacecraft entered the asteroid belt on Decem- Goldstone out of view of the spacecraft,
ber10, 1977, Voyagerl trailing a few hours behind Part 3 tested the capability of the Deep Space
Voyager 2. Yoyager 1, launched after Voyager 2, has been Network and MCCC to respond to rnultiple data rate
flying a faster trajectory, and has been steadily pulling changes with minimal data loss during such transirions.
ahead of its companion since overtaking it last Decem- Four mbde changes in 28 minutes were made. More
Derr ). multiple data rate tesrsare planned before encounter,
N/\sn
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Infrared Interferometer Spectrometer (IRIS) Warmed Up at least in the low frequency ranges. Preliminary results
from study of the first six months of data show no
Commands sent September 28 turned the IRIS correlation between the bursts and Io in the low frequen-
flash-off heater on for 2o hours, temporarily raising the cies. A detailed report is in preparation.
spectrometer temperature to 267" Kelvin. It is hoped this The polarization characteristics of Jupiter's radio
will interrupt or reverse any crystallization (freezing) of the emissions have also been defined: In the high frequencies,
motor damper and beamsplitter bonding material that may there is consistent right-hand circuiar polarization, while in
be responsible for the slow IRIS degradation observed since the low frequencies, there is consistent left-hand circular
launch, Spectrometer temperatures have now cooled to the polarization. This was an unexpected result. (To understand
normal 200- K operating point and subsequent tests will right- and left-hand polarization, think of a right- or
determine if the short warm-up was beneficial. left-hand screw thread or a propeller's helical motion
After these results are analyzed, a long warm-up may through water.)
be initiated. Its purpose would be to counteract stressesin
the IRIS which could also have contributed to its decreased Terrestrial Kilometric Emissions
sensitivity by affecting interferometer alignment.
This is the first time the heater has been energized in In the ten days following launch, the PRA had the
space. Ordinarily, it would be used if necessary to boil off opportunity to observe Earth's kilometric radiation while
condensates accumulated in the launch phase. the spacecraft was transmitting at a high data rate. For the
first time, Earth's polarization in the frequency range from
Summary 100 to 300 kHz was measured. This information is valuable
for comparison with Jupiter data, as Jupiter's hectometric
Voyager 1 is about 704 million kilometers (437 and kilometric emissions may resemble terrestrial kilo-
million miles) from Earth, travelling at 15 kilometers per metric radiation.
second (34,+65 miles per hour) relative to the Sun. In addition, radio data from Jupiter, as from Earth,
One-waylight time is about 39 minutes. quite probably relate to particle precipitation, and to
Travellingat 14 kilometersper second(31,675 miles magnetic field strength and orientation in the polar
per hour), Yoyager2 is about 667 million kilometers(415 ionosphere. This data should give some characteristicsof
million miles) from Earth. One-waylight time is about Jupiter auroras.,
37 minutes.
YOYAGER
October 25, 1978 No. 25
-#u
'TATToNARYgi
;',r,i^' fgry ql-E
INFLIGHT
CALIBRATION i'ff:ilx',ili$,i,_
Summary SOURCEs
Or
I{
Voyager 1 is about 675 million
kilometers (420 million miles) from
Eartb, traoelling witb a heliocentric
{
il:'*P*
iri*;
uelocity of 14.9 kilometers0.3 miles)
per second. One-waylight time is 37
minutes 36 seconds,Encounter opera-
f,l
tions begin in 78 days.Encountertest
and training beginsOctober30.
One-way ligbt time to Voyager2
-,;"
is 35 minutes 27 seconds.Tbe craft is
nearly 637 million kilometers (396
million miles) from Earth, witb a
beliocentric oelocity of 13.6 kilo-
lneters (8.5 miles) per second.
H I G H E N E R G YA P E R T U RSEI D E tOW ENTRGYAPERIURE
SIDE
Encounter operationsare six montbs
auay.
Low-Energy Charged Particle Instrument. The LECP, located on the science boom
about midway between the spacecraft bus and the scan platform, uses two detector
syst€ms to me.Fure both planeta"ry systems and interplanetary space.
Update the one-hour test was to measure the response of the instru-
ment to changing light levels while under automatic control
VoyagerI of the flight data subsystem.
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n S t o t u s( 2 1 3 l 3. 5 4 - 7 2 3 7
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n O p e r o l i o n sS t o t u s( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 6 6 6 5
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I
Voyager 2's IRIS will be monitored to determine if Fusion research may also benefit from Voyager's
future heating will be required to maintain the improved probing of the trapped radiation around Jupiter. Particies in
performance. confined plasmas, forced to fuse, release an enormous
energy. Clezily, Jupiter is able to confine charged particles
A similar wafin-up of the Voyager 1 IRIS began
very nicely.
October 24 in an attempt to eiiminate anomalies first noted
in Jrrly 1978.
Instrument Description
The VoyagerSpacecraft Located on the science boom, the LECP consists of
(Tbis is tbe seaenth in a planned series of brief explanatorJ/ two soiid-state detector systems mounted on a rotating
notes on tbe spacecraft and its subsystems.) platform to give full-sky coverage.
PartT - Low-Energy Charged Particles Investigation The Low-Energy Magnetospheric Particle Analyzer
(LEMPA) will be used primarily for magnetospheric obser-
While Voyager 1's current speed of about 54,000 vations near the target planets, Eight solid*tate silicon sen-
kilometers (33,000 miles) per hour far exceeds the space sors measure the energy and count the number of particles
speed record for man*, an ion travelling at that velocity colliding with their surfaces. The LEMPA measures elec-
would hardly qualify as a significant energetic particle to trons in the range from about 10 kilo electron volts (keV)
the low-energy chargedparticle (LECP) experiment. to 11 mega electron volts (MeV), and protons and heavier
ions in the L5 keV to 150 MeV range.The dynamic range is
To the LECP, low-energy means particles travelling at
about 1 to more than 10" (nearly one trillion) particles
24OO to 28,00O kilometers (1500 to 18,000 miles) per sec-
per square centimeter per second from the entire celestial
ond, as opposed to high-energy particles travelling at the
sphere, extending to 101 3 for some of the sensors.
speed of light, 300,000 kilometers (186,000 miies) per
second.
The Low Energy Particle Telescope (LEPT) contains
The LECP investigation is a suong coupling factor in fifteen solid-state detectors designed to measure the charge
Voyager's complement of fields and particies investigations, and energy distributions of low and medium energy nuclei
contributing to many areas of interest, including studies of
in the interplanetary medium and the outer regions of
solar wind, solar flares, particle accelerations, magnetic planetary megnetospheres. The LEPT uses two of the
fields, cosmic rays, and satellite surface structures.
thinnest detectors ever flown: 2 and, 5 microns (L inch is
about 25,400 microns)! Its range is from about 0.1 to 40
Scientific Objectives
MeV per nucleon, but certain modes may extend the range
Two detector systems of the LECP instrument will from 0.05 to 500 MeV per nucleon.
allow measurements during both the long interpianetary
Both detector systems are mounted on a rotating
cruise periods and the encounters with the planetary sys-
platform which can step through a full 360'circle which is
tems themselves. The extremely wide dynamic range,
divided into eight angular sectors. Stepping rates range from
combined with wide coverage in energy and species,will
1 revoiution every 48 minutes during cruise to 1 revolution
allow characterization of almost a1l energetic particle
every 48 secondsduring encounter operations. A fixed sun-
environments Voyager traverses.
shield protects the most sensitive detectors from viewing
Study of the physics of planetary magnetospheres
the Sun early in the mission, and serves as a high energy
will further understanding of asftophysical objects such as
particle shield during traversai of the magnetosphere.
pulsars and compact X-ray sources, the origin of satellites
and their surface structures, and perhaps, the origin of the Detailed design of the LEMPA teiescope and LEPT
solar system itself. anti-coincidence detectors were done at the University of
An important task of the LECP will be to establish Maryiand, with assembly at the Applied Physics Lab zt
the morphology of the Saturnian and Uranian magneto- J ohns Hopkins University. The LEPT telescope was
spheres, including bow shock, magnetosheath, magnetotail, designed and built at the Applied Physics Lab.
trapped radiation, and satellice-energetic particle inter-
actions. In-Flight Performance
Observations of particle accelerations will aid in
better understanding of solar flare processes, cosmic ray The LECP has performed according to specifications
acceleration processes, and processesin our own magneto- so far, and has obtained very good data on solar flare and
sphere. interplanetary particles, and Jovian electrons.
Next to the Sun, Jupiter is the solar system's single
most powerful radio source in the electromagnetic spec- Investigators
trum. The reasons for this are not well understood, but may
stem from an apparent strong interaction between Jupiter's The LECP principal investigator is S. M. Krimigis of
magnetosphere and the Galilean satellite Io. The lo-Jupiter the Applied Physics Lab (APL) at Johns Hopkins Univer-
interaction could be of importance in understanding other sity. Co-investigators are T. P. Armstrong (University of
astrophysical radio sources. Kansas), W. I. Axford (Max Planck Institute for Aeronomy,
West Germany), C. O. Bostrom (APL), C. Y. Fan (Univer-
sity of Arizona-Tucson), G. Gloeckler (University of Mary-
:39,897 kilometers (24,791 miles) per hour, set by American astro-
nauts Stafford, Cernan,and Young in Apollo X on May 26,7969, land), and L. J. Lanzerotti (Bell Telephone Laboratories,
at an altitude slightly less than !22 kilometers or 76 miles. Murray Hill, New lersey).
fiIlSSION STATUS BUTLETIN
YOYAGER
November 17,1978 No.26
VOYAGERl OVOYAGERI
Update
EN_c_ouNIEl o VoYAGER
2 Voyager 1 - IRIS Performance Improves
Nov17,le78
Th e infrared interferometer spectrometer (IRIS)
SEPT5, 197i performance has improved considerably as the resuit of a
54-hour warm-up initiated on October 24. The data indi-
cates that proper operation has been restored in the Michel-
son motor which is used by both the reference and infrared
interferometers. Symptoms of increased resistance to move-
ment in the linear-travel motor had been present since
JuIy 1.978, It was theorized that hardening of the motor
dampers could be responsible for the problem.
Using the flash-off heater, the instrument optics mod-
uie temperature was raised from 200" Kelvin (the normal
operating point) to 275" Kelvin in an effort ro reverse any
crystallization and associated hardening of rhe motor
dampers. The flash-off heater was installed to evaporate
condensation accumulated in the launch phase. Future
warm-ups of the Yoyager 1 IRIS may be performed to
maintain the improved performance.
EAR,TH,
AT
VOYACERI LAUNCH Voyager 2 * Multiple Data Rate Tests
SEPT
5, 1977 The iast of three in-flight capability demonsrration
tests, the multiple data rate test, was run on November 14.
CLOSING lN. Voyagert hastracedanarcof about840million During the 12-hour test, a 2-hour sequence exercising
kilometers (520 million milesl in its chase of the giant planet. various data modes and rates was repeated six rimes. The
Earth has completed 1-114orbits of the Sun in that time, while
Jupiter has traveled about 1/10 of its own orbit. One-way light data rates ranged from 72O0 bits (of computer data) per
time to Voyager 1 is 35 minutes 46 seconds. Voyager 2's arc second (bps) to 115,200 bps, while the modes ranged from
d i s t a n c e i s a b o u t 8 5 0 m i l l i o n k i l o m e t e r s ( 5 3 0 m i l l i o n m i l e s ) ,a n d general science to tape recorder playback and imaging.
one-way light time is 33 minutes 40 seconds. Soon. Voyager's
Jupiter pictures will surpass the quality of Earth,based During the encountcr period, the spacecraft will be
observations.
changing rates and modes frequently to gather as much
information as possible. The purpose of the rest was to
The VoyagerSpacecraft familiarize ground personnel with the nature of the chang-
ing spacecraft signal data rates during the encounter
(Tbis is tbe eigbtb in a planned series of brief explanatory sequence, to verify the capability of the ground data system
notes on tbe spacecraft and its subsystems.) to "lock" onto the signal and process it within the specified
time, and to validate the mission planning allowance for
Part 8 - Plasma Wave Investigation data losses due to data rate changes,
As the twin Voyagers hurtled out of the earth's PRA Communications Test
atmosphere, they soon entered a new environment where Another test of the communications link between
they are surrounded by a low-density, ionized gas called a Voyager 2's planetary radio astronomy (PR.A) experimenr's
"plasma." This plasma, composed entirely of atoms that are radio receiver and the radio telescope at Stanford Univer-
broken apart into electrons and charged positive ions, is a sity will be conducted on November 18. The six-hour resr
good electrical conductor with properties that are strongly will further explore the adequacy of the signal strength
affected by magnetic fields. against background interference. A possibiliry of communi-
Plasma sources include the Sun. as well as the planets cating with Voyager through the PRA receiver, should the
themselves and perhaps some of the satellites. Low density remaining radio receiver fail, exists, but would require new
plasmasare unusualin other ways, ordina.t ground facilities and extensive re-programming of existing
"t::l:it spacecraft software.
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n S t o l u s( 2 1 3 13 5 4 - 7 2 3 7 r[l
-ifolI->
N a t r o n aAl e r o n a u t i casn d
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o n O p e r o t i o n sS t o t u s( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 6 6 6 5 uv'"
SoaceAdm nrstraton S t q t u sB u l l e t i n E d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
Jet PropulsionLaboratory
Detection of lightning dischargesin the atmospheres
of Jupiter and Saturn would also be very significant. The
plasma wave investigations will search for the audible
"whistler" signals that escape into the rnagnetospherefrom
such discharges. The characteristic descending whisde that
is detected from iightning is due to the scattering of similar
velocities when the direction of travel is along magnetic
lines of force' the higher frequencies of a broadband pulse
arrive at the receiver in advance of iower frequencies. Using
high-rate telemetry usually used by the imaging subsystem,
ANTENNA the PWS will be able to send back the entire audio sisnal in
EXTENSION the range 5O Hertz (Hz) to about 14.4 kHz.
VOYAGER
December 6, 1978 No.27
MissionHighlights simulated stations imperiling critical data playback, key
personnel become mysteriously incapacitated. Atl of this
A flurry of activity in early December will conclude
could happen for real, at any time of day or night, and so
the flight team's test and uaining period, and wili be fol-
the flight team is geared to cope with any contingency.
Iowed by a 2-week period of low activity on-board the
Nothing musr go wrong during the critical encounter period
spacecraft to give flight team members a break before
in March.
Encounter Operations begin in earnest with the Observa-
The three key encounter sequencesto be transmitted
t o r y p h a s eo n J a n u a r y4 , 1 9 7 9 .
to and executed by Yoyager 1 in early March have been
Most of the activity will center around the encounter-
tested under real pressuresand real scheduies, while the two
ing spacecraft, Voyager 1, while the cruising spacecraft,
cruising spacecraft have provided practice in real data
Voyager 2, will continue its routine calibrations and house-
analysis. And although a fine line is followed between
keeping chores.
impacting on-going operations and the requirement to train
Near Encounter Test for Encounter, one never knows when the emergency could
be real. . .
Highlight of the spacecraft activities in Voyager 1's
final month of the Earth-to-Jupiter cruise phase will be the
NeaI Encounter Test on December 12 through 14. This will
be a thorough preview of the 39-hour period on March 3
through 5, 1979, when Voyager 1 wiil make its closest
approach to the giant planet Jupiter.
The Near Encounter Test will put the spacecraft"
tracking stations, and flight team through their paces in a
scenario as near the real thing as possible. Instrument point-
ing will be restricted during the tesr, however, as many of
the instruments must not point within 20 degrees of the
Sun. During closest approach in March, the Sun wiil be
blocked from the instruments' views by the planet and
satellites, but during the December rest precautions will be
taken to protect the instruments.
Assessment of the Near Encounter Test performance
should be completed by January 5.
R e c o r d e d M i s s i o n S t o t u sl 2 l 3 l 3 5 4 - 7 2 3 7
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4 8 0 0O a kG r o v eD r v e
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Readiness Reviews Voyager.l's Jupiter Enc.o-unterpreparations starus and th.e
science investigacors will report on the status of their
Prior to the Near Encounter Test, a seriesof readiness
respectiveinstrumentsaboard the craft.
reviews will be conducted to assesspreparations for Jupiter
Encounter. Imaging
On December 5, the ground data system (GDS) will
be reviewed, with reports on the tracking stations, comput- Voyager 1 is expected to rerurn Jupiter images this
ing facilities, data lines, and procedures.Also on December month which will exceed the,t'esolution of all previous
5, the imaging review will assessthe status of the imaging Earth-based photographs of the giant planet. Beginning
system and the plans for imaging during the Encounrer December 10, a 2O-hour "movie" of the pianet will be
phases. taken, with shuttering of the cameras every hour. This
The Encounter Ooerations Readiness Review will be period will cover two rotarions of the planet, and will pro-
held on December Z, with reports on the readinessof the vide 3-color coverage of the planet every 36 degreesof
flight team, the Deep Space Network, the mission control Jovian rotation. The movie to be taken in late January will
and computing center, and the public affairs office. involve shuttering the cameras every 96 seconds and will
Finally, on December 11, the final cruise-phasemeer- provide 3-color coverage of the planet every 3 degreesof
ing of the Science Steering Group will brief the scientists on the planet's rotation.
Distance from Earth Distance to Jupiter One-Way Light Time Heliocentric Velocity
The VoyagerSpacecraft polar region. As the radio signals pass through the planet's
atmosphere, profiles of the relative temperature and pres-
(Tbis is tbe nintb in a planned series of brief explanatory sure of the gasesat various distances from the surface will
notes on the spacecraft and its subsystems.) be compiled. This and other data can be used to determine
the amounts of the various elements in the atmosphere as
Part9-RadioScience
compared to each other (the abundanceratios).
The same radio system that provides tracking and Except for the first months of their journeys, the two
communications with Voyager will be used to explore the spacecraft appear close together in the sky as seen from
planetary systems and interplanetary space. Earth by the Deep Space Network's antennas.When the
Earth moves to the opposite side of the Sun from the space-
Measurements of Voyager's radio communication
craft (superior conjunction), as will happen several times
waves will provide information on the gravitational fields
during the mission, it will be possible to see changesin the
and atmospheres of the planets and their satellites, the
radio signals as they pass near the solar corona regions on
rings of Saturn, the solar corona, and general relativity.
their way to Earth. In the fall of t979, a unique alignment
ScienceObjectives of Earth, the Sun, and the Voyager, Pioneer, and Helios
Changes in the frequency, phase, delay, intensity, and spacecraft will allow an intensive study of the Sun's proper-
polarization of the radio signals between Earrh and the ties because the ray paths from each spacecraft will probe
spacecraft provide a wealth of information about the space a different region of the solar corona, making possible
between the two and about the forces that affect the craft ngarly simultaneous measurements.
and alter its path.
Instrumentation
For example, the gravity fields of the planets and sate-
Voyager's radio equipment includes several improve-
llites will pull on the spacecraft, altering its velocity and
ments over previous planetary missions,both for engineering
thrrs changing the radio frequency. The mass density of the
and scientific purposes. These inciude coherent, high-power
satellites and the internal structures of the planets can then
3.5- and 13-centimeterwavelengthamplifiers,increasedan-
be calculated from the observed effects on the spacecraft.
tenna size [the 3.66-meter (12-foot) diameter antenna dish
When the spacecraftmoves behind a celestial body, as
is the largest of its type ever flownl , an ultra-stable oscil-
viewed from Earth (called occultation), the radio waves
lator, improved phase and group delay stabilities in the
coming from the spacecraft will pass through the atmos-
spacecraft transponder, and an attitude control thruster de-
phere and ionosphere of that body on their way toward
sign which reduces spacecraft accelerationsalong the Earth-
Earth. Changesin the signal characteristicsduring these per-
spacecraft lin e-of-sight.
iods wiil give information about the vertical structure of rhe
The radio scienie instrumentation uses a new on-
atmosphere, ionosphere, clouds, turbulence, and possibly,
board stabilized frequency reference, known as the ultra-
weather.
stable oscillator (USO). Compared to previous spacecraft
As Voyager 1's microwave signals pass through the
radio systems, the USO makes Voyager less sensitive to
rings of Saturn in 1980, the nature of the rings will be in-
thermal and electrical changes, as well as to radiation ef-
vestigated.Rock particles would affect the signal differently
fects. The USO is designed to give maximum frequency
than would water or ammonia ices.Various sizesof particles
stability for periods from 1 second to 10 minutes.
wiil, also be evident and scattering of the radio waves will
provide a measure of the total amount of material (and of lnvestigators
what sizes) in the rings.
Occultation measurements will be made at Jupiter, V.R. Eshleman of Stanford University (California) is
Saturn and its rings, the Saturnian satellite Titan, and pos- the radio science team leader. Team members include
sibly Uranus (by Voyager 2 rn 1.986). G.L. Tyler (Stanford), T.A. Croft (Stanford Research Insti-
Voyager 1's radio waves will pass by Jupiter's equa- tute, Menlo Park, California), and J.D. Anderson, G.F.
torial region, while Voyager 2's rays will pass near the south Lindal, G.S. Levy, and G.E. Wood (JPL).
MISSION STATUS BULTETIN
VOYAGER
December 15, 1978 No. 28
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NationalAeronautrcs
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S t o t u sB u l l e t i n E d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
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4800 Oak GroveDrive
Pasadena. 91103
Californra
AC213 354-4321
The VoyagerSpacecraft A secondary cruise objective is to search for ions
formed from the neutral interstellar gas. This gas is ionized
by ultraviolet light from the Sun and by charge exchange
(This is the tenth in a pla_nnedseries of brief explanatory with ions of the solar wind. Initially, at least, ions formed
notes on the spacecraft and its subsystems.) from the interstellar gas have different properties than ions
of the solar wind: interstellar ions travel in different
Part 1O - Plasma Investigation directions and are expected to have a different energy
distribution. It is hoped that tracking of these two factors
Deep space has long been characterized as a cold, will allow a separation of ions from the two sources.
dark void. In truth, it is none of these. It is filled with
planets, stars, dust, and clouds of low density, high-speed,
At Jupiter, the PLS experiment team will study the
ionized gases called plasma, which originates from both the
interaction of the solar wind with Jupiter; the sources,
Sun and other stars.
properties, form, and structure of the Jovian magneto-
Travelling at supersonic speeds (averaging 400 kilom- spheric plasma; and the interaction of the magnetospheric
eters or 250 miles per second), plasma streams from the plasma with Jupiter's Galilean satellites.
Sun in all directions, forming the solar wind. When the solar
wind interacts with the earth's magnetic field, many The second satellite from the planet, Io, is known to
interesting phenomena result, such as the northern lights be a source of neutral hydrogen, potassium, and sodium
and large geomagnetic srorms. Similar effects have been atoms which form an incomplete donut-shaped ring (torus)
observed at other planets. close to the orbit of Io. In addition, there is an ionized
cloud of sulfur associated with Io which has been observed
Voyager's plasma experiment, one of the array of by ground-based telescopes. Although the PLS cannot
fields and particles investigations, will measure plasma observe the neutral atoms in these clouds directly, the
properties including velocity, density, and temperature for neutral gas is eventually ionized and becomes part of the
a wide range of flow directions in both the solar wind and
Jovian magnetospheric plasma. The PLS has been designed
magnetospheres. to detect ionized sodium and sulfur close to the orbit of Io.
Interstellar Ions, Solar Winds and Donuts It is possible that Ganymede, the fourth satellite from
the planet, may also have a ring of neuual particles which
serve as a source for ions in the Jovian magnetosphere. If
As are all of Voyager's fields and particles instru-
ments, the plasma experiment (PLS) is designed to explore that is the case, the PLS should detect some of these ions
when the spacecraft is close to the orbit of Ganymede
a range of environments - interplanetary space, planetary
(closest Ganymede approach will be from about 120,000
systems, and interstellar space.
kilometers).
The plasma within the magnetosphere is far from H. S. Bridge of the Massachusetts Institute of
quiet, the solar wind introduces disturbancessuch as soiar Technology is the plasma experiment principal investigator.
flare events; satellites moving within the magnetosphere Co-investigators are J. W. Belcher, A. J. Lazarus, S. Olbert,
leave "wakes" similar to ships in the ocean; instabiiities and J. D. Sullivan (MIT); L. F. Burlaga, R. E. Hartle, and
build. Global instabilities of the plasma, called magneto- K. W. Ogilvie (Goddard Space Flight Center); A. J. Hund-
spheric substorms, cause auroral displays at Earth as the hausen (High Altitude Observatory, Unviersity of Colo-
upper atmosphere interacts with the substorm. Becauseof rado); C. M. Yeates (JPL); V. M. Vasyliunas (Max-Planck-
the size of Jupiter's magnetosphere,the typical time scale Institut fiir Aeronomie, Katlenburg-Lindau, West Ger-
for the development of plasma instabilities should be on the many); and G. L. Siscoe (University of California at Los
order of days, not hours, as at Earth, thus allowing more Angeles). The instrument was built at MIT by an engineer-
detailed study by the Voyagers as they traverse rhe area. ing team headed by R. Butler.
O U T E R P L A N E T S - T h e a n c i e n t g o d s a w a i t m a n a s c l a s s i c a lm y t h o l o g y a n d p l a n e t o l o g y m i x i n t h i s r e n d e r i n ge x e c u t e d
f o r t h e N a t i o n a l A i r a n d S p a c e M u s e u m . J u p i t e r , l a r g e s tp l a n e t i n o u r s o l a r s y s t e m . i s n a m e d i n h o n o r o f t h e c h i e f g o d ,
k n o w n a s Z e u s t o t h e G r e e k s . A s k y g o d , h i s w e a p o n sa r e t h u n d e r a n d l i g h t n i n g , T h e f a t h e r o f J u p i t e r i s S a t u r n { C r o n u s } ,
l e a d e r o f t h e e l d e r g o d s , t h e T i t a n s . U r a n u s ( " H e a v e n " ) w a s a n e a r l y G r e e k g o d , w h i l e N e p t u n e ( P o s e i d o n l ,g o d o f t h e s e a ,
is a stormy brother of Jupiter. Finally, another Jovian brother, Pluto, ruled the underworld and the afterlife.
One of four aperturesin the photopolarimeter instru- Other special exhibits in the gallery include a flight
ment was tested on December 6. The instrument's aperture
over Mars, a descent to Venus, relative sizes of planetary
wheel was turned to the 0.25 degree diameter aperture to
bodies (from a 10-foot diameter Jupiter to a 1-foot
test its field-of-view.
diameter Earth to a l-inch diameter Ceres, the largest
Just prior to the Near Encounter Test (December asteroid), computer terminal games, comparative planetol-
I2-I4), the sun sensors/high gain antenna, scan platform ogy, planetary weather reports, and "Unanswered Ques-
pointing, and imaging optics were calibrated on Decem- tions" - some of which Voyager hopes to answer.
b e r 11 .
MissionHighlights (1076 feet) long. The tape will be played back to Earth
daiiy,takingapproximatelythreehourseachtime.
Voyager 1 Jupiter Observatory Phase Begins
Only the 64-meter(210-foot) antennasof the Deep
Sixty days and sixty million kilometers from Jupiter, Space Network have the capability to receive the daily
Voyager 1 begins its Jupiter observatory phase on Jan- playbacks.Sevenand one-halfhours of daily coveragewill
uary 4. The events of the next twenry-six days are designed be provided by the 64-meterantennaat Madrid, Spain,
to provide a time history of scientifically important since this station will be in view of the spacecraftduring
phenomena on Jupiter. prime shift working hours (at JPL) throughoutrhe obser-
Most of the observations in this phase are repetitive, vatory phase.The DSN's 26- and 34-meterantennaswill
to provide a data base for all ensuing data. Significant monitor the ship duringthe remaining16.5hourseachday.
calibration sequencesoccur between January 4 and 6 to
prepare for the Jovian encounter. Astronomy Notes
On January 6, the imaging cameras will begin to
On January 4, Eartb reacbesperibelion, its closest
record a series of four, single narrow-angle images, each in a
approacb to the Sun during the year. On this day, Eartb
different color. Taken every two hours (every 72 d,egreesof
will be 147 million kilometers (91 million miles)from tbe
Jupiter rotation), the series is part of a long duration study
Sun.
of large-scale atmospheric processes. These images will be
examined to determine the most dynamic features on Jupiter reachesopposition on January 24, wben it
will be directly opposite tbe Sun from tbe Eartb. Tbrough-
Jupiter and to allow retargeting to them during the near
out January,Jupiter will be exceptionalb/brigbt and oisible
encounter period.
all nigbt. Currently in tbe constellationCancer,Jupiter will
Daily "system scans" by the other optical instru-
be nortb and eastof the bright star Sirius tbis month.
ments will provide a large-scale look at the entire Jovian
system. The ultravioiet spectrometer (UVS) will raster the
system eight times each day for two hours, looking for the The VoyagerSpacecraft
distribution of ultraviolet emissions. The infrared inter-
ferometer spectrometer (IRIS) will collect about 100 (Tbis is tbe eleventb in a planned series of brief explanatorJ/
infrared spectra of Jupiter in a 1%-hour period once a day, notes on the spacecraft and its subsystems.)
sampling different longitudes.
The photopolarimeter (PPS) scanswill search for the Part 11 - Photopolarimeter Experiment (PPS)
edge of lo's sodium cloud, expected to extend as far as 60
By studying sunlight scattered by the atmospheres
Jupiter radii (R1) (4.3 million kilometers or 2.7 million and surfaces of the planets and satellites,Voyager's photo-
miles) from Jupiter, nearly 10 times farther than lo's
polarimeter experiment will unveil many secrets of the
orbital radius.
outer planets.
In addition, the system scansinclude a searchfor the
Eight wavelengths in the ultraviolet and visible
bow shock, the intersection of the solar wind plasma and
regions of the spectrum (from 2350 to 7500 Angstroms)
the planetary magnetosphere.
will be measured in intensity (brightness) to determine the
The planetary radio astronomy/plasma wave duo will
physical properties of the atmospheres of Jupiter and
search for Jupiter radio bursts and perturbations of the
Saturn (perhaps seeing evidence of lightning and auroral
plasma once a day. All of the fields and particles insrru-
activity), the rings of Saturn, the satellite surfaces, and
ments will begin an accelerated level of daily measurements
the sodium cloud around Io.
to characterize the beginning of Jupiter's influence in the
sea of solar wind particles that dominates most of the space
Scientific Objectives
in the solar system.
The daily accumulations of data will fill nearly eight The photopolarimeter will examine both the large-
tracks a day on the on-board digital tape recorder that and micro-scale structure and properties of the clouds of
consists of one 8-track magnetic tape about 328 meters Jupiter, Saturn, and the Saturnian satellite Titan. It will
N/\sn
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C a l i { o r n i al n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y
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probe the vertical distribution of cloud particles, as well as I9 APERTURE
the particle size and shape, and provide inferences on !l/2o APERTURE I,/4O APERTURE
atmospheric composition.
Similar studies will define the structures of major
planetary features such as Jupiter's Great Red Spot, zones,
and belts. The photopolarimeter will search for evidence of
crystalline particles in these features, and will gather dara
on the effects of scattering and absorption of sunlight by
these particles, and the resulting effect on thermal balance.
From these data, additional model calculations will be APERTURE
WHEEL
made, providing insight into domains impenetrable by
Voyager's complement of remote sensinginstruments. FILTERWHEEL I/ 60 APERIURE
The atmospheres will be compared to two akeady
well-known samples- the thick, hazy, warm atmosphere of
Venus, and the more familiar atmosphere of Earth.
At the satellites of the outer planets, rhe photo- will also be probed: Why are there several distinct rings,
polarimeter wiil probe the density of the atmospheres which do not appear to merge? Is there an atmosphere
(where they exist), the texture and possible compositional between the rings? What are the lifetimes of particles in the
variations (on a large scale) of the surfaces,the bulk reflec- rings? How does the gravitational field of Saturn hold these
tivity, and the sodium vapor cloud around Jupiter's Io. rings in orbit?
The spectral reflectivity of a body can aid in deter-
mining its surface composition, be it bare rock, dust, frost Instrumentation
deposits,ice, or meteor remains.
Mounted on the scan platform, Voyager's photo-
Io's Encircling Cloud polarimeter is a combination photometer/polarimeter
with filters. Light is gathered through a 6-inch-diameter
The first suggestion that gases escaping from the
Cassegraintelescope and passed through an aperture, a
satellite atmospheres might be unable to escape from the
polarization analyzer, a filter, and a depolarizer before
planetary gravtty fields and would thus form doughnut-
being converted into electrical pulses which indicate the
shapedrings (toruses)around the planet, was made tn 1973.
number of photons (a measurableunit of iight) in a parti-
Since then, it has been confirmed that such a toroid does
cular energy band (color or wavelength), and polarization.
indeed exist in the vicinity of Jupiter's satellite Io, and that
The apertures, analyzers, and filters are all mounted
it is composed primariiy of sodium and atomic hydrogen.
on separatewheels which turn independently of each other
It extends from about three times the radius of Jupiter
and so provide a gteat number of combinations. Normal
(3 R1) to beyond 10 times the radius (10 R1). Io, and
operation during Encounter would consist of stepping
perhips Amalthea and Europa, orbit within this-cloud, and
through a programmed sequence of 40 filter/analyzer wheel
Voyager will search for it during the far encounter phase
combinations every 24 seconds.
as it sailscloser to the giant planet.
There are four apertures providing llt6, 7/4, t, and
Io seems to be covered by evaporite salts, including 3-7|2-degree diameter circular fields of view. Eight posi-
atomic hydrogen, sodium, potassium, and sulfur, and tions on the analyzer wheel provide open, dark, a calibra-
possibly atomic magnesium, calcium, and silicon. These are tion source, and five Polacoat analyzers with their trans-
sputtered off from Io's salt-coveredsurface into rts atmo- mitting axes located at 0, 60, tzo, 45, and 135 degrees-
sphere by chargedatomic particles (ions) which are trapped rotation. Eight filters measure wavelengths from 2350
in Jupiter's strong magnetic field. through 75OO Angstroms, each corresponding to the
spectral features of specific elements or compounds (for
Ring Puzzles example, sodium D, hydrogen, helium, calcium, mag-
nesium, silicon, and potassium atoms, ozone, and hydroxyl
Finally, the photopoiarimeter will probe the rings of
radicals). Some filters measure scattering and methane
Saturn, including the size and shape, and allow inferences
on the probable composition of the ring particles, their absorption.
density, and radial distribution. The dynamics of the rings
Instrument Status
Summary
Voyager I, 52.9 million kilometers (32.8 million
miles) from Jupiter, has settled into its daily routine of
imagingobservations,systemscans,infraredsamplings,and
playbacks. One-waylight time is 33 minutes 18 seconds.
Voyager 2 is cruising quietly, with severalroutine
calibrationsscheduledfor the next week. At 127.4 million
kilometers (79.2 million miles) from Jupiter, one-way
light time to Earth is 30 minutes 2 seconds.
The VoyagerSpacecraft
(Tbis is the twelftb in a planned series of brief explanatory/
notes on the spacecraft and its subsystems.)
N/\SN
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vide insight into its own origin, since it is too small to have
undergone extensive internal changes, such as the melting
INlERFACE
that has resulted in the earth's molten core.
TO SCAN PLATFORM
Instrumentation
MissionHighlights
Detail Increases
Yoyager 2
a
The trailing spacecraft remains relatively quiet, with tr
=
routine tests and calibrations at cruise level. The IRIS has =
undergone a heating period to maintain good performance
in the interferometer's Michelson motor.
Another test of a link between the Stanford radio
telescope and the planetary radio astronomy antennas is
planned for the near future in further analysis of the PRA's CIRCULATION - Current models of Jupiter's atmosphere theorize
capability should Voyager 2's remaining radio receiver fail. rising zones and descending belts.
N/\sn
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The VoyagerSpacecraft COLLIMATOR
DETECTOR
RADIATION ARRAY
Part 13 - Ultraviolet Spectrometer
DIFFRACT ION 500 A
OCCULTATION
GRATING r700 A M I RR O R
Hydrogen, helium, and methane - hardly a mixture
of which one would wish to take a deep breath. Yet these
are the expected major constituents of the atmospheres at
E L E C T R O N I C SE N C L O S U R E
the outer planets.
Voyager's ultraviolet specrrometer (UVS) will study OCCULTATION
FIELD
the composition and structure of the atmospheres of l0 cm
Intensive Imaging
NORTHNORTHNORTH NORTHPOLAR
BELT
TEMPERATE REGION
NORTHNORTH NORTHNORTH
TEMPERATE
BELT TEMPERATE
ZONE
NORTHTEMPERATE NORTHTEMPERATE
BELT ZONE
NORTHEQUATORIAL NORTHTROPICAL
BELT ZONE
N.COMPONENT EQUATORIAL
ZONE
BAND
EQUATORIAL
S.COMPONENT SOUTHEQUATORIAL
BELT
SOUTHTEMPERATE SOUTHTROPICAL
BELT ZONE
SOUTHSOUTH SOUTHTEMPERATE
TEMPERATE
BELT ZONE
SOUTHPOLAR SOUTHSOUTH
REGION GREATREDSPOT TEMPERATE
ZONE
M A J O R F E A T U R E S O F J U P I T E R - G r o u n d - b a s e da n d P i o n e e r the ever-changing atmosphere. The once-wide south tropical
observations of the giant planet have allowed scientists to label z o n e i s p r e s e n t l y c o n s i d e r a b l yn a r r o w e r , w h i l e t h e n o r t h t e m p e r -
Jupiter's major features for reference purposes. Voyager is ate zones have spread. Voyager is also identifying smaller fea-
already rewriting the textbooks, however, as its cameras record tures, such as plumes and hot spots,and tracking theirchanges.
M/SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO.33 FEBRUARY2, 1979
Iearned more about Jupiter than they had learned in all the
preceding time.
Planetary Atmospbere
o Global circulation, including convection, vorticity
and divergence
Horizontal and vertical structure of the visible
clouds and their relationship to the belted appear-
ance and dynamical properties
Vertical structure of high, optically thin scattering
lO CASTS ITS SHADOW - As Jupiter's satellite lo (lower layers
centerl passes before the giant planet, its shadow (leftl can be a Anomalous features such as the Great Red Spot,
s e e n f a l l i n g o n t h e p l a n e t ' s f a c e . l o i s t r a v e l i n gf r o m l e f t t o r i g h t
south equatorial belt disturbances, plumes, hot
in its one-and-three-quarter-day orbit around the planet, Even
from this great distance the image of lo shows dark poles and a spots, and white ovals
bright equatorial region. Voyager 1 was 47 million kilometers o Cloud coloration
(29 million miles) from the planet when this imagewas taken
through a blue filter on January 17,1979. Satellites
. Comparative geology of the Galilean satellites at
The VoyagerSpacecraft lessthan 15-kilometer resolution
o Geologic structure of several satellites at high reso-
Part 14 - Imaging lution (about 1 kilometer)
o Chromophores on Io
Until about 1960, photography of Jupiter was hit or
a Atmospheres
miss - if some time was available at the telescope on a clear
. Size and shape of the satellites by direct measure-
night, and if someone was inclined, they might take a picture
ment
of Jupiter. The next opportunity might not come for weeks. a Direction of the spin axes and period of rotation of
But the visible disk of Jupiter is all "weather" - ran- the satellites; establish coordinate systems for the
dom photos of the planet amount to little more than taking larger satellites
an occasional picture of clouds somewhere on Earth and System
then trying to forecast the weather.
. optical scattering properties of the planets and
In the early 1960's, astronomers began a new satellites at severalwavelengths and phase angles
routine - an observation program in which they took pic- o Novel physical phenomena such as the "flux tube,"
tures of Jupiter every hour all night long, on every night meteors ("fireballs"), lightning, auroras, or satellite
that was good for viewing. In ten years, astronomers shadows.
(contd)
EncounterMinus31 DaYs
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Space Administration
J6t PropulsionLaboretory
CalitorniaInstituleof Technology RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
Pasadena.California StatusBulletinEdilor(213)354-4438
Color reconstruction is done by combining images
taken through different filters; for example, blue, green and
orange. Certain features, such as the Great Red Spot, are
more.prominent and show more contrast in some filters
(blue, for example), than in others (orange) due to the
reflectivity.
V O Y A G E RI M A G I N GT E A M
B.A. Smith,Team Leader- Universityof Arizona H . M a s u r s k -y U . S .G e o l o g i c aSl u r v e y
L.A. Soderblom,DeputyTeam Leader- U.S.Geological Survey J . M c C a u l e -y U . S .G e o l o g i c aSl u r v e y
R. Beebe- New MexicoStateUniversity D . M o r r i s o n- U n i v e r s i t o
yf Hawaii
J. Boyce- NASA and U.S.GeologicalSurvey T. Owen- StateUniversityof New York,
G.A. Briggs- NASA Stonybrook
M . C a r r- U . S .G e o l o g i c aSl u r v e y C . S a g a n- C o r n e l U
l niversity
A . F . C o o k l l - S m i t h s o n i alnn s t i t u t i o n E . M .S h o e m a k e- r U . S .G e o l o g i c aSlu r v e ya n d
G . E .D a n i e l s o nJ,r . - C a l i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y C a l i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo f
M . E .D a v i e s- R a n dC o r p o r a t i o n Technology
G . E .H u n t - U n i v e r s i t C
y o l l e g eL, o n d o n R . G .S t r o m- U n i v e r s i t oy f A r i z o n a
A. Ingersoll- CaliforniaInstituteof Technology V . E . S u o m i- U n i v e r s i t oy f W i s c o n s i n
T.V. Johnson- Jet PropulsionLaboratory J . V e v e r k a- C o r n e l U
l niversitv
M/SS/ONSTATUS REPORTNO.34FEBRUARY9, 1979
HIGH-SPEED JET STREAM - This photo of Jupiter taken COLD SPOT - Generally, dark features on Jupiter are warm,
January 27, 1979, by Voyager 1 shows a thin brown band in the while light features are cold; the exception is the Great Red
l i g h t z o n e n o r t h o f t h e G r e a t R e d S p o t ( e x t r e m er i g h t ) , t h o u g h t Spot, the coldest place on the planet. Believed to soar about 25
to be the location of a high-speedjet stream similar to Earth's jet kilometers (15 miles) above the surrounding clouds, the Great
s t r e a m . T h e s p a c e c r a f tw a s 3 7 . 5 m i l l i o n k i l o m e t e r s ( 2 3 . 3 m i l l i o n R€d Spot covers a portion of the planet about three times the
miles) from the planet at the time of this photo. Voyager 1 will size of Earth. With this and other pictures, scientists are able to
t a k e m o r e t h a n 1 5 , 0 0 0 p i c t u r e so f J u p i t e r a n d i t s m a j o r s a t e l l i t e s detect counterclockwise motion within the spot. This picture of
by the timo it has completed its three-month encounter with the Jupiter was taken January 29, 1979. by Voyager 1 when it was
giant planet. 3 5 . 6 m i l l i o n k i l o m e t e r s ( 2 2 m i l l i o n m i l e s )f r o m t h e p l a n e t .
2x2MosaicsBegin
Marked by the end of 100 hours of intensive imaging Voyager 1 will be taking three-color 2 x 2 mosaics of
and the beginning of planetary mosaics, Voyager 1 the planet every two hours (every T2.degreesof the pldnet's
moved into the next phase of its Jupiter observarions on rotation) through February 21. By then, the disk will have
February 3. grown from about 0.24 degree on February 3 to about 0.61
degree, and 3 x 3 mosaics will begin. Some wide-angle
As the spacecraft draws near, the disk of the planet images will be taken through the methane filter during the
grows, filling much of the field of view of the narrow angle cuffent mission phase.
camera (0.4 degree). Since spacecraft motion creates a
pointing offset moving from one side of the imaging frame The 2 x 2 mosaics consist of shuttering once rhrough
to the other, mosaics are now necessary to ensure full each of three fiiters (violet, orange, and green) at four dif-
coverage of the planet. ferent points, moving the scan platform in a square pattern,
EncounterMinus24 Days
NationalAeronauticsand
Soace Administration
Jot Propulsion Laboralory
CalilorniaInstituteof Technology RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
Pasadena.Californra StatusBullelinEditor(213)354-4438
l
Voyager 1 continues daily infrared spectra of Jupiter. Voyager1 March5, 1979Jupiter EncounterTraiectory
During January, the infrared interferometer spectrometer
(IRIS) acquired 74 hours of data on the infrared composi-
plete yaw turns, during which the spacecraft was off celes-
tion of the Jovian system.
tial reference. The current celestial reference star is
Canopus.
Earth-based infrared images of the planet are being
used to interpret the spacecraft data. The instrument on- Rescheduled from December, a four-hour target
board the spacecraft will not have good spatial resolution maneuver on February 8 provided critical calibrations of
until the planet is much closer, as it still seesJupiter as one the scan platform instruments. The routine maneuver
source, requires several spacecraft turns to position the target plate
(mounted on the spacecraft bus at an angle to the scan
On January 26, the IRIS flash-off heater was turned platform) in the Sun so that each instrument can "look" at
on for the third heater cycle sequence. The heater remained the reflective plate as the platform maneuvers.
on for 53 hours until January 29, when the heater was
turned off, the instrument was turned on, and a dark sky Satellite Drift Measurements Begin
calibration was performed. All systems are operating well.
The ultraviolet spectrometer (UVS), which has been
scanning the entire Jovian system, has begun zeroing in on
Trajectory Correction Right On specific satellites. Within the next week, the UVS will look
at Ganymede (February 8), Europa (February 11), Io (Feb-
Voyager 1's flight path was adjusted on Jawary 29 ruary L2), and Callisto (February 16), measuring ultraviolet
with a 22-minute 36-second bum of the hydrazine emissions.The instrument's field of view slit will be pointed
thrusters. The ship's speed was changed by 4.745 meters a near the satellite and slowly moved across it. This permits
second (9.27 miles an hour). One more pre-Jupiter burn is measurements of both the satellite and any nearby gas
scheduled for February 20, to "fine-tune" the spacecraft's clouds associated with that satellite.
aiming point, as knowledge of the orbits and ephemerides
of the satellites are refined from Earth-based observations Voyager 1 Enters Jovian Realm
and optical navigation data.
With the crossing of the orbit of Jupiter's outermost
Cruise and Target Maneuvers Allow Calibrations known satellite on February LO, Voyager 1 will have
physically entered the Jovian system. Tiny Sinope, some 23
A "mini" cruise science maneuver was performed by million kilometers (15 million miles) from its "parent",
Voyager 1 on February 2 to allow calibration of several circles the giant planet in retrograde orbit (clockwise). The
fields and particles instruments. The six-hour maneuver satellite was discoveredin 1914; its diameter is estimated at
involved four complete roll turns followed by four com- about 14 kilometers (8.7 miles).
M/S S/ONSTATUS REPORTNO.35 FEBRUARY19 , 1979
M i s s i o nH i g h l i g h t s
As Jupiter looms larger and larger in Voyager 1's
"eyes", anticipation and excitement are building back here C
at home. A'lembersof Voyager's world-wide science com-
munitl' rvill be converging on the Jet Propulsion Labora-
torl', operations base for the mission. this week, taking up UVS SYSTEMSCAN- The UVS is scanning the Galileansystem
their short residencesfor the Encounter activities. A press from one edgeof Callisto'sorbit to the other.The satellites
are
(from left): Callisto,Ganymede,
lo, Europa,and Amalthea.
conference at NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C., on
Februarv 22 wlll present results to date, and the presscorps
rvill begin to descendon JPL February 26. which might occur in the torus clouds. All of the data were
The flight team, meanwhile, continues flying the recorded to be played back the next day.
craft, checking it out, instructing it, and guiding it in for its
close-up look at the giant planet and its satelliteson March First Callisto Images Targeted
4, 5, and 6.
The first targeted images of Callisto were taken
through six filters on February 18, and are being processed
UVS ScansSystem
through the mission and test imaging system (MTIS) and
Image ProcessingLab (lPL) at JPL. The resolution is calcu-
Although the highest resolution images and closest
lated at about 140 kilometers per line pair, the highest
approaches to the six bodies (Jupiter, Amalthea, Io,
resolution ever obtained of Callisto. Mapping of the satellite
Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto) will not be obtained until
will continue this week.
the 39-hour Encounter period, much is being learned on the
approach legs about the system as a whole.
Trajectory Correction Maneuver Scheduled
Daily system scans b1' the ultraviolet spectrometer
(UVS) sweep from the edges of one side of Callisto's orbit Voyager 1's final pre-Encounter trajectory correction
to the opposite side, searching for ultraviolet emission is scheduled for February 20. The hydrazine thrusters will
sourcesand distributions, and for gaseousclouds associated fire for approximately 2-ll4 minutes, changing the velocity
with some of the satellites. During these scans, the scan and direction to deliver the spacecraft right to Jupiter's
platform is stepped across the system at a very low rate doorstep.
(about O.OO52degreeper second), moving in either azimuth Knowledge of the exact paths of the spacecraft and
or elevation. Some of the slews produce a "sawtooth" pat- target bodies is essential for loading the final pointing
tern of coverage, while others step straight across the sys- instructions for the scan platform. There is little margin for
tem, with the long axis of the instrument's field of vierv slit error, as the optical instrument's fields of view range from
perpendicular to Jupiter's equatorial plane. 0.10 degreeto 3.5 degrees.
On Februarv 18, the spacecraft was maneuvered so
that the UVS slit was parallel rather than perpendicular to 3 x 3 Mosaics to Begin
the plane of the ecliptic. The spacecraft was taken off
Canopus and Sun lock and oriented by its gyro system in Jupiter has grown so large that 2 x 2 narrow angle
order to accomplish this "VERTSCAN" maneuver. The mosaics, taken for the last 10 days, will soon no longer
UVS then rastered acrossthe system for about 7-1/2 hours, cover the disk, and 3 x 3 mosaics will begin on February
looking for contours of atomic hydrogen, taking the sys- 21. The disk wili be covered in a grid of overlapping images
tem's temperature, and looking for changesin temperature takenat nine pointing positions.
EncounterMinus14 Days
N a t r o n a lA e r o n a u t r c sa n d
Space Admrnrstration
J€t Propulsion Laboratory
RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
C a l i t o r n i aI n s t r t u t eo f T e c h n o l o o v S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a ,C a l r f o r n r a P u b l i cl n f o r m a t i o nO f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
Europa will pass behind the planet on February 22,
affording an opportunity to observe an eclipse of the satel-
lite. Measurementswill be taken to determine any tempera-
ture changes on Europa as it emergesfrom the shadow of
the planet. These changes could provide insight into the
satellite's composition, as a rocky surface would react dif-
ferently to the temperature change than wouid an icy one.
Searchingfor wind patterns travelling at greater than
100 meters per second (223.2 miles per hour), the imaging
systein will take a quick look ar large regionsof Jupiter on
February 24. Lower wind speeds will be detected during
closestapproach.
On February 25, the first targeted image of Gany-
mede will be taken. Also, Voyager 1 is exp.ectedto cross
the bow shock sometime next week, about tsebruary26.
Summary
Yoyager 1 is 15.2 million kilometers (9.5 million
miles) from Jupiter, travelling with a heliocentric velocity
of 13.2 kilometers per second (29,428 miles per hour). It
has traced an arc through space of 988 million kilometers
(614 million miles) since it left the Earth on Seprember 5,
CLOSER AND CLOSER - Objects as small as 600 kilometers
(375 miles) across can be seen in this image taken by Voyager 1 1977. lt is now 644 million kilometers (400 million miles)
o n F e b r u a r y 1 , 1 9 7 9 , a t a r a n g eo f 3 2 . 7 m i l l i o n k i l o m e t e r s ( 2 0 from Earth, and radio signalstake 35 minutes 42 secondsto
million miles). Different iolors in clouds around the Great Red cross this distance.
Spot seem to imply that the clouds swirl around the spot at
Voyager 2 is cruising quietly, 100 million kilometers
. v a r y i n ga l t i t u d e s . T h e b r i g h t c l o u d i n t h e e q u a t o r i a l r e g i o n n o r t h
(62 million miles) from Jupiter. Its heliocentric velocity has
o f t h e G r e a t R e d S p o t a p p e a r st o b e w h e r e b r i g h t c l o u d s o r i g i -
nate, then stream westward. The images also show apparently slowed to 11.5 kilometers per second (25,7O7 miles per
regular spacing between th€ small white spots in the southern hour), and its arc distance (the total distance travelled) is
h e m i s p h e r ea n d s i m i l a r p o s i t i o n i n g o f d a r k s p o t s i n t h e n o r t h e r n about 987 million kilometers (613 million miles). Radio
hemisphere. A major activity will be to understand the form and
s i g n a l st a k e 3 1 m i n u t e s 4 0 s e c o n d st o t r a v e l t h e 5 7 1 m i l -
structure of the spots and how they may relate to interactions
between the atmospheJic composition and its motions. The
l i o n k i l o m e t e r s( 3 5 5 m i l l i o n m i l e s ) b e t w e e nt h e s p a c e c r a f t
bright ovals south of the Great Red Spot were seen to form and Earth.
about 40 years ago. and have remained much the same ever
since, while the Great Red Spot itself has been observed for - -t
h u n d r e d so f y e a r s . I
I I
I -- UVS
EncounterMinus 10 Days
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Administration
Jet Propulsion Laboratory RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
C a l i l o r n i aI n s t i t u l eo f T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
M i s s i o nH i g h l i g h t s t o-5
ARCS - These radio spectra, collected by Voyager 1's PRA associated with Jupiter's- north magnetic pole each time it points
instrument on two different days, clearly *row the arc structures toward the spacecraft.
I
LAUNCH DAIE= 915177 flies beneath the satellite'ssouth pole. Voyager 1's closest
JUPITERARRIVALDAIE= 315179 approachto Io will be from 20,253 km (I2,752 mi) three
hours after closestapproach to Jupiter on March 5. lo is
SUN EARTH
ION
OCCULTAT about the sizeof our moon (3636 km or 2259 mi), and is
OCCULTATION
ZONE ZONE - lO the third largest of the four Galilean satellites.It rotates
KM
20,253 about the planet in abo,tt 42-l/2 hours at a distanceof
Mll
\t2,752 422,OOOkm.
GANYMEDE
KM
115,000
(71,500M1) Like Io, Europa appearsto be a rocky body and
recent pictureshave shown a dark equatorialband. With a
AMALTHEA diameter of about 3066 km (1905 mi), it is slightly smaller
125,r08KM 416,942
KM
(78,359M1) than our moon and circlesJupiter in about 3-l/2 daysftom
t259,075
Ml
about 671,4O0km. Voyager 1 will passits closestto this
satellite,732,243km (454,996mi) on March5.
o
once every 12 hours (approximately). In the past, it was
speculated to be a captured asteroid, because of its small
size and its reflectivity characteristics. Its average distance
from the planet is 181,500 km (70,077 mi).
}ryo
o*'"
o
At about 5.9 RJ (Jupiter radii), Io is very much AMALTHEA
ClosestApproaches
Earth-receivedtime
M/SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO.37 MARCH2, 1979
EncounterMinus4 Days
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u l i c sa n d
Space Administration
Recorded Mission Status (213) 354-7237
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
C a l i l o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y Status BulletinEditor (213) 354-4438
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a P u b l i c I n f o r m a t i o nO f f i c e ( 2 1 3 ) 3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
F U L LR E DS P O T
M O S A IO
C NM A B C H3 rrrAAGtNG
f osatc oF to
SHORTI"Y
B€FORE CTOSESI
s0"w APPROACH AT J + I.5 HR
MOSAICS - Voyager 1 will record many mosaics of Jupiter and its Red Spot as a whole will begin about 8:51 p.m. (PST)on March 4,
satellites, zeroing in on some features several times, Near midnight from a distance of 668,000 km (415,000 mi). Eighty-one imaging
(PSTI on March 3, for example, Voyager 1 will mosaic the Great frames will be taken in 43 minutes, in a 3 x 9 two-color map.
Red Spot in a three-color 3 x 4 mosaic (abovel from a distance of Mosaics will also provide high resolution maps of several of the
a b o u t 1 . 8 m i l l i o n k m ( 1 . 1 m i l l i o n m i l . T h e l a s t m o s a i co f t h e G r e a t satellites.
Earth. Sun Occultations will turn so that the ultraviolet spectrometer (UVS) slit is
tangent to the planet's limb as Voyager, still in Earth occul-
About 3-1l2 hours after closestapproachto Jupiter, tation, enters the overlapping Sun occultation zone. The
at about 8223a.m. (PST),Voyager1 will begin to disappear spacecraft antenna will then be pointing at the north limb.
behind the planet (as seen from Earth). First Earth and Then. the flash!
then the Sun will be blocked (occulted) from the space- A focussing phenomenon for radio waves, the flash
craft's view by Jupiter'sbulk. The occultations,eachlasting will last for about 1 second, during which the strength of
about two hours,overlapeachother for about an hour, and the radio signals would incredse about 100 times if there
provide opportunities for unique radio scienceand ultra- were no absorption of the signal by the atmosphere. The
violet measurements. brief flash will allow measurement of atmospheric shape
As the spacecraftslips around into the shadowof the and absorption at a greater depth than possible at any other
planet, it will track the virtual imageof the Earth around time. During this instant, Voyager 1 will be able to measure
the limb (disk edge)of the planet. Gyro drift turns, slower the concentration of components down to about the 4-bar
than a clock's hour hand, will follow the image. pressure level with lOO,OOOtimes greater sensitiviry.
Prior to the occultation, the spacecraftwill be tuned And then, the spacecraft will exit Earth occultation,
to S-bandhigh power and X-band low power to equalize tracking the virtual image of the Earth until the spacecraft
the signalsthrough the atmosphere.The distortion of the passesto the other side of the planet and reappearsas seen
radio signals as they pass through increasingdepths of from Earth.
clouds will tell much about the shapeand concentrarionof During the Sun occultation, the UVS will probe the
materialsin the ionosphereand atmosphere. deep atmosphere, determining gases, composition, and
Then, in a seriesof commandedturns, the spacecraft temDeratures.
RADIO SCIENCE
E A R T HO C C U L T A T I O N
MANEUVER
( V I E W EF
DR O ME A B T H }
V O Y A G E1R
**-1 U V SS U NO C C U L T A T I O N
E N T B YA T J + 4 . 5H R
EXIT
J+5.5H8
JUPITER
AT CLOSESTAPPROACHMAR 5, 1979 (4:42a.m. PST)
E Q U A T O R I ^A L +10
-
PLANEx*-- i--
CALLI STO \ffi
-24 HRS
,,TOP" VIEW
0 HRS\-r10-Z:z
CA
+ 1 4H R S O HRS
'ra
'o CA
oi +6 HRS
2
cA+2eHRs vd:,
L I E W I T H I N1 / 2 D E G R E EO F J U P I T E R ' S
E O U A T O R I A LP L A N E .
=
CA CLOSESTAPPROACH
3
5-MICRON HOT SPOTS - An infrared photograph of Jupiter from as 25 km (15 mil above the surrounding clouds and is, therefore,
Earth {left} shows heat radiating from deep holes in the clouds of cooler. The infrared photo was recorded on January 10, 1979, by
Jupiter. Bright spots in the image are regions of higher temperatures t h e 2 0 0 - i n c h H a l e T e l e s c o p eo n P a l o m a r M o u n t a i n . C a l i f o r n i a ( o p e r '
than the darker areas. and correspond to parts of the atmosphere ated by the California Institute of Technology and the Carnegie
that are relatively free of obscuring clouds. The Great Red Spot Institutionl by R, Terrile of JPL, The Voyager 1 photo at right was
appears on the west (leftl limb as a dark area encircled by a bright also taken January 10, about one hour after the infrared image' The
r i n g , i n d i c a t i n gt h a t t h e s p o t i s c o o l e r t h a n s u r r o u n d i n g r e g i o n s 'T h i s s p a c e c r a f tw a s a b o u t 5 3 , 8 m i l l i o n k m ( 3 3 ' 4 m i l l i o n m i ) f r o m t h e
supports other findings that the Great Bed Spot may stand as high planet,
nearly6.t million km (3.8 million mi) from the planet. All times are Pacirt.c Standard Eartb-receiaed eoent start
Later, the solar wind increased,squashingthe mag- times.
netosphereback towards the planet,and six hours after the March 3
first crossing,Yoyager1 recordedthe bow shock again,at a 10:54 a P l a s m a o u t f l o w m e a s u r e m e n t s( s p a c e c r a f tr t t a n e u v e r )
distanceof 5.9 million km (3.7 million mi). 4:40 p l o e c l i p s eo b s e r v a t i o n sb e g i n
March 4
By 5 a.m. (PST) on March 1, the solar wind had
4:4O a B e g i n N e a r E n c o u n t e r i n t e n s i v ea c t i v i t y
overtakenthe spacecraftonceagain,pushingthe bow shock
11:37 a S e a r c hf o r " r i n g s " o f d u s t
to 5.1 million km (3.2 million mi). 12:33 p First photos of Amalthea
Voyager 1 crossedthe magnetopause about noon on 6:12 p I R o b s e r v a t i o n so f f i r s t S - m i c r o n h o t s p o t ( J u p i t e r )
March 1, placing the spacecraftinsidethe magnetosphere 5:48 p lR, imaging of Earth occultation exit point (Jupited
for the first time. 8:48 p Last full mosaic of Great Red Spot on day side of
J u o it e r
11:00 p A m a l t h e a - c l o s e s ta p p r o a c h ( - 4 1 6 , 9 4 2 k m )
March 5
4:O5 a B e g i n i n t e n s i v el o e n c o u n t e r
4:43 a J u p i t e r - c l o s e s ta p p r o a c h ( - 2 8 0 , 0 0 0 k m )
7:00a lmaging data to tape recorder (end of real-time
i m a g i n gu n t i l 2 : 2 2 p l
7:38 a Predicted lo flux tube passagestarts
7:52 a l o - c l o s e s ta p p r o a c h ( - 2 0 , 2 5 3 k m )
8:23 a Enter Earth occultation
9:16 a E n t e rS u n o c c u l t a t i o n
10:20 a Exit Earth occultation
9:57 a Europa - closest approach 1732,245 kml
11:28 a Exit Sun occultation
6:53 p G a n y m e d e - c l o s e s ta p p r o a c h ( - 1 1 5 , 0 0 0 k m )
7:3'l o E n d i n t e n s i v eN e a r E n c o u n t e r
March 6
9:46 a C a l l i s t o - c l o s e s ta p p r o a c h ( - 1 2 5 , 1 0 8 k m )
1:O3p S e a r c hf o r n e w s a t e l l i t e s
M / S S / O NS I A T U S R E P O R TN O . 3 8 M A R C H 1 2 . 1 9 7 9
THAR SHE BLOWS - These photos of a volcanic eruption on Several regions have been identified by the infrared instrument on
Jupiter's satellite lo present the evidence for the first active volcanic Voyager 1 as being severalhundred degrees Fahrenheit warmer than
eruption ever observedon another body in the solar system,The s u r r o u n d i n g t e r r a i n . a n d c o r r e l a t e dw i t h t h e e r u p t i o n s , T h e f a c t t h a t
photo at left. taken from a distance of 499,0O0 kilometers (310,000 s e v e r a le r u p t i o n s a p p e a rt o b e g o i n g o n s i m u l t a n e o u s l ym a k e s l o t h e
miles) on March 4, shows a plume-like structure rising more than most active surface in the solar system and suggeststo scientists that
100 kilometers (60 miles) above the surface, a cloud of material l o i s u n d e r g o i n g c o n t i n u o u s v o l c a n i s m , r e v i s i n gd o w n w a r d t h e a g e
being produced by an active eruption (dark, fountain-like feature o f l o ' s s u r f a c eo n c e a g a i n .
near the limb). At least four eruptions have been identilied on
Voyager 1 pictures and many more may yet be discovered on closer
analysis.
T a k e n t h o u r , 5 2 m i n u t e s l a t e r ,t h e p h o t o a t r i g h t s h o w s p l u m e - l i k e
O n a n e a r l y a i r l e s sb o d y l i k e l o , p a r t i c u l a t e m a t e r i a l t h r o w n o u t o f a structures rising more than 100 kilometers (60 miles) above the
volcano follows a ballistic trajectory, accountingfor the dome-like surface. Another characteristic of the observed volcanism is that it
shape of the top of the cloud, formed as particles reach the top of appears to be extremely explosive, with velocities more than 2,000
t h e i r f l i g h t p a t h a n d b e g i n t o f a l l b a c k . S p h e r i c a le x p a n s i o no f o u t - m i l e s a n h o u r ( a t l e a s t 1 k i l o m e t e r p e r s e c o n d )- m o r e v i o l e n t t h a n
f l o w i n g g a sf o r m s a n e v e n l a r g e r c l o u d s u r r o u n d i n gt h e d u s t . a n y t e r r e s t r i a lv o l c a n o sl i k e E t n a , V e s u v i u so r K r a k a t o a ,
Beyond its crearors' wildest dreams, Voyager 1. has The wealth of information reftlrned by its eleven
successfully met its first objectives, streaking pasr Jupiter, scientific experiments will keep the analysts busy for years,
threading its way among the five asrounding inner satellites, especially when coupled with that being returned by its
and discovering that Jupiter, like Satum and Uranus, is a sister ship Voyager 2, now less than four months from its
ringed planet. own trek through the Jovian sysrem.
N a t t o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
C a i i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo { T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
JUPITER - A RINGED PLANET - Voyager l's narrow'angle p r i s e d o f d a r k p a r t i c l e s ,t h e r i n g i s 2 9 t o 3 2 k m ( 1 8 t o 2 0 m i l t h i c k ,
camera detected this thin, flat ring of particles around Jupiter's a n d w a s s e e na b o u t 5 7 , 6 1 5 k m ( 3 5 , 8 O Om i l f r o m J u p i t e r . T h e w i d t h
e q u a t o r o n M a r c h 4 . A t i m e e x p o s u r eo f 1 1 . 2 m i n u t e s a l s o c a p t u r e d o f t h e r i n g h a s n o t b e e n d e t e r m i n e d ,a s V o y a g e r v i e w e d i t e d g eo n ,
s t a r t r a i l s o f t h e b e e h i v e c l u s t e r o f 1 1 b r i g h t g a l a x i e si n t h e b a c k - I t h a s a s t e l l a r m a g n i t u d eo f a b o u t 2 2 ( t h e f a i n t e s t s t a r v i s i b l et o t h e
ground. A slight nodding of the spacecraft due to its several long naked eye is 6th magnitude).The black dots are calibration points
instrument booms - one is 43 feet long - accounts for the wavy in the camera. At right, an artist's concept of the ring.
m o t i o n o l t h e s t a r t r a i l s a n d t h e s i x e x p o s u r e so f t h e r i n g . . C o m -
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C a l r f o r n r aI n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y Status BulletinEditor (2131354-4438
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
*?
F I R E W O R K S - S i m u l t a n e o u se r u p t i o n so n l o s h o o t a s h m o r e t h a n
2 6 0 ( 1 6 0 m i ) i n t o t h e s k y . T w o e r u p t i o n sc a n b e s e e ni n t h i s p h o t o ,
one on the limb. the other on the terminator {the shadow between
n i g h t a n d d a y ) . F o r t y t i m e s l a r g e ra n d 2 0 0 t i m e s m o r e b r i l l i a n t t h a n
E a r t h ' s f u l l m o o n , J u p i t e r i l l u m i n a t e st h e d a r k h e m i s p h e r eo f l o .
The photo wastaken by Voyager 1 on March 8 while 4.5 million km
( 2 . 6 m i l l i o n m i ) b e y o n d t h e s a t e l l i t eT. h i s i s t h e p h o t o i n w h i c h l o ' s
v o l c a n o e sw e r e f i r s t d i s c o v e r e d b y J P L o p t i c a l n a v i g a t i o n e n g i n e e r
LindaA. Morabito.
E U R O P A - O n e o f t h e b e s t i m a g e so f E u r o p a t a k e n b y V o y a g e r 1
( t r o m 2 m i l l i o n k m ) s h o w s s y s t e m so f l o n g l i n e a r s t r u c t u r e sw h i c h
c r i s s - c r o s st h e s u r f a c e i n v a r i o u s d i r e c t i o n s . P o s s i b l ef a u l t s o r f r a c -
tures, some of these featuresare over one thousand km long and
a b o u t t w o t o t h r e e h u n d r e d k m w i d e . V o y a g e r 2 i s e x p e c t e dt o g e t a
c l o s e r l o o k a t t h e a m b e r - c o l o r e ds a t e l l i t ei n J u l y , 1 9 7 9 .
""w'
'&
t{4
't3 ..w
':\t''
.W
.
: *r,
.,,,...3'^
CALLISTO - This multi-ring basin {left center) on Callisto consists is consistent with its low planetary density and probable low
of a light floored central basin some 300 km (185 mi) in diameter internal strength. Tlrese basins are tlrought to be formed by impacts.
surrounded by at least eight to ten discontinuous but rhythmically Voyager 1 took this photo on March 6 from about 200,000 km
spaced ridges. The great number of rings observed around this basin (125.000 mi).
P I N P O I N T O F L I G H T - T i n y , r e d A m a l t h e a w a s d i s c o v e r e do n l y 8 7
years ago. Too small ever to have been round, it has a long history of
impact cratering and its red color may be a surface coating rather than a
c h a r a c t e r i s t i co f t h e s a t e l l i t e ' sb u l k . T h e i n n e r m o s t o f J u p i t e r ' s 1 3 o r 1 4
known satellites.it whizzes around the planet every 12 hours, only
about 111,000 km (69,O00 mi) from the cloud tops -outside the
newly-discovered ring. Usually overpowered by the brilliance of Jupiter,
Amalthea is especially hard to spot from Earth even with a large tele'
scope, In this photo taken by Voyager 1 on March 4, Amalthea appears
a b o u t 1 3 0 k m ( 8 Om i l h i g h b y 1 7 0 k m ( 1 0 5 m i ) w i d e .
G A N Y M E D E - L a r g e s t o f J u p i t e r ' s s a t e l l i t e s ,G a n y m e d e i s a b o u t
1-112 times the size of our moon but only about half as dense.
Therefore, it is probably composed of a mixture of rock and ice. lts
features resemble mare and impact craters found on the moon,
while the long white filaments resemble rays associatedwith impacts
o n t h e l u n a r s u r f a c e .V o y a g e r 1 t o o k t h i s p h o t o o n M a r c h 4 f r o m a
d i s t a n c eo f 2 . 6 m i l l i o n k m ( 1 . 6 m i l l i o n m i ) .
I M P A C T C R A T E R S - N u m e r o u s i m p a c t c r a t e r sp o c k t h e s u r f a c eo f
Ganymede. Many of the craters have extensive bright ray systems;
the older ones do not. Bright bands traversing the surface in various
directions contain an intricate system of alternating linear bright
a n d d a r k l i n e s w h i c h m a y r e p r e s e n td e f o r m a t i o n o f t h e c r u s t e d i c e
layer. These lines are particularly evident near the top of the pic-
ture. A bright band trending in a north-southdirection in the lower
left-hand portion of the picture is offset along a bright line,
p r o b a b l y d u e t o f a u l t i n g . T w o l i g h t c i r c u l a r a r e a si n t h e r i g h t u p p e r
center of the picture may be the scars of ancient impact craters
which have had their topographic expansion erased by flow of the
c r y s t a l i c y m a t e r i a l .T h i s p h o t o w a s t a k e n b y V o y a g e r 1 o n M a r c h 5
from a range ol 246,OOOkm (153,00O mil.
M/SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO.40 APRIL13 . 1979
M i s s i o nH i g h l i g h t s N OR T H lo'sORBIT
MAGNETIC JUPITER
When Voyager 1 swings through the Sacurn system in P OL E
late 1980, the volume of information returned from its F LUX
Jupiter Encounter will still be under study. Voyager 1 TUBE
unmasked whole new worlds - presenting new puzzles.
Space exploration, as one journalist noted, is an endless
adventure,
By March 15, Voyager t had returned over 15,000
photographs of Jupiter and its moons. Add to this the
wealth of data accumulated by 10 other science experi-
AMALTHEA
ments, and it becomes apparent that it will require months,
perhaps years, to wade through it all. Preliminary results are SULFUR TORUS - Ultraviolet observations discovered a hot,
c h a r g e dr i n g o f s u l f u r e n c i r c l i n gJ u p i t e r ,
in, however.
The pictures provide immediate visual information. In
1965, Mariner 4 returned 22 frames of Mars, 2OO by 2OO
Update
elements, and each requiring 8-1/2 hours to play back to Five weeks after its sweep through the Jovian system,
Earth at a data rate of 8-l/3 bits per second. Fourteen years Voyager 1 continues taking parting shots and scanning the
later, at a data rate of 115,200 bits per second, Voyager 1 system on the far side of the planet.
returned many of its 800 x 800 element pictures in about On April 9, Yoyager 1 fired its attitude control
48 seconds. thrusters to adjust its course toward Safllrn, nearly 800
This issue will concentrate on Jupiter and its million kilometers (500 million miles) away. Nineteen
environs; subsequent issueswill deal with the satellites. months from now, in mid-November, 1980, Voyager 1 will
get its closest look at the ringed planet and six of its com-
panions.
Sulfur Torus
Jupiter's orbital energy has already been used to
accelerate the spacecraft to about 84,500 kilometers per
Imagine a huge, glowing fluorescent cube, miilions of hour (52,500 miles per hour) and altered its flight path.
miles in diameter. This is one model of the doughnut- Without Jupiter's aid, Voyager 1 would require nearly 1.5
shaped cloud (torus) of sulfur wobbling around Jupiter at million kilograms (1600 tons) of fuel as opposed to 5 kilo-
the distance of Io's orbit. grams (11 pounds) to achieve the same flight path. Three
Visible only in uluaviolet light, thg torus of sulfur- more trajectory correction maneuvers are planned before
three atoms (or doubly-ionized sulfur, which has lost two Saturn Encounter.
electrons per atom due to high temperatures), has a density Voyager 1 will now settle into a relatively quiet cruise
of about 500 sulfur atoms per cubic centimeter (compared mode, continuing to look at the dark side of Jupiter and its
to less than 0.01 total particles per cubic centimeter in rhe spectacular satellites, to sample the interplanetary medium,
interplanetary medium), Some sulfur was expected, but the and to make regular instrument calibrations and tests.
density was a surprise. Voyager 2's Jupiter observations begin on April 24,
In addition, a great deal of energy, perhaps as much 76 d,aysbefore its closestapproach to the system on July 9.
as 5OO billion watts of power, is required just to hold the Now travelling with less than half Voyager 1's velocity,
particles in orbit. The sulfur was thought to be sputtered Yoyager 2 is 64.6 million kilometers (40 million miles)
off the dry surface of Io, but that theory was laid ro resr from Jupiter. On April 16 through 20, the spacecraftwill
when Io's explosive volcanoes were discovered. execute the sequence of events for July's Encounter.
(contd) Voyager 1 made a similar dry run in December.
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
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R e c o r d e dM i s s r o nS t a t u s( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 7 2 3 7
C a l i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a .C a l i f o r n i a n f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i oO
RED SPOT CIRCULATION - Taken one
Jupiter rotation apart, these photos depict
four days in the life of the centuri€s-old
atmospheric feature. Changes in circulation
during the 4o-hour period are clearly visible,
especially the flow of light material at the
spot's right edge. The photos were taken on
February 2-3, 1979 from 31 million km
( 1 9 . 4m i l l i o n m i l ,
YOUNG SURFACE - Even before discovery of lo's active CLOSE LOOK AT lo - lo's equatorial region contains a myriad of
volcanoes, the lack of impact craters sugg€sted that the surface is complex features: mountains and plateaus bounded by scarps thal
relatively young. The reddish, white and black areas are probably vary from irregular to linear, vast smooth plains, rough bright areas,
surface deposits, possibly consisting of mixtures of salts, sulfur and This image was acquired on March 5, 1979, at a rang6 of 82,500 km
sublimate deposits. Many of the blacl( spots are associated with (51,300 mi) and shows an area approximately 600 km (370 mil
craters, probably of volcanic origin. The smallest feature visible are square.
about 10 km (6 mil across in this photo tal<en by Voyager 1on
March 5, 1979 at a range of 377,000 km (23,300 mil. Amalthea
Tiny Amalthea, innermost of Jupiter's companions,
had never been photographedwith any spatial resolution.
Weeks of Earth-based observations,combined with
"Tbere is no sucb tbing as a boring Galilean satellite." Voyager's optical navigationphotos and computercalcula-
L. A. Soderblom tions, were required to pinpoint its orbital path so that
DeputJ/Team Leader,Imaging Team accurate pointing instructions could be given to the
cameras,
Prior to the Pioneer spacecraft's observations in 1973- Barely 140 k* (go mi) high by 26o km (160 mi)
74, Jupiter's five innermost satellites, including the four long, Amalthea alwayspoints its long axis toward Jupiter.
largest, the Galileans, were mere pinpoints of light to man, Its elongatedshapemay suggestthat it is on the vergeof
indistinguishable except for their positions. By March 6, being broken apart by a tug of war betweenthe gravitiesof
however all five had become unique, distinctive individuals. Jupiter and the satellites.
Before Yoyager, these satellites were as unknown as Taken from a distance of about 421,000 km
the planet Mars was in 1700. Voyager l scanned them at (262,000 mi) with a resolution of about 8 km (5 mi),
resolutions comparable to the Mariner observations of Mars photos of Amalthea confirmed its reddish coloring. Its
in the early 1970's - in effect, 27O yearc of planetary reflectiviry is very low, however,so that its surfacecompo-
exploration compressed into five days. sition is probably not ice, frost, or sulfur.
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C a l i f o r n i al n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nEditor(213) 354-4438
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a P u b l i cl n t o r m a t i o nO f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
PuzzlingIo Summary
Of all the satellites, Io generated the most excite- With one spacecraft 53 million km (33 million mi)
ment. As Voyager 1 closed in on Io, thepuzzle was why its beyond it and another approachingfrom 54 million km (34
surface, so cratered and pocked when viewed from a dis- million mi), Jupiter is well-surrounded by curious Voyagers
tance, began to look smoother and younger as the space- from Earth.
craft neared. Theories of erosion due to intense bombard- Now 73 days from its closest approach to the planet,
ment from Jupiter's radiation were advanced. Voyager 2 has begun its Jovian observations which will
But the mystery was solved with the discovery of reach a peak on July 9. Approaching on a different sunline
active volcanoesspewing sulfur 160 km (100 mi) high and than the first ship, the second spacecraft will augment the
showering it down on the crust, obliterating the old surface. findings, rounding out the picture of the Jovian system. In
Infrared data indicated hot spots at the locations of the addition, changes since Voyager 1's passagewill be studied.
plumes identified in the photographs, confirming the find. Voyager 2 is scanning the entire system in the ultra-
Io's is undoubtedly the most active known surface in violet, sampling Jupiter's radio emissions and interactions
the solar system, surpassing even the Earth. If a spacecraft with the solar wind, and taking selected pictures.
were to fly past Earth, it is unlikely that any volcanic Currently in a quiet cruise mode, Voyager t has
activity would be visible despite the great number of vol- passed the half-way mark on its journey from Earth to
canoes. But Io! As many as seven simultaneously erupting Saturn. The active program in the computer command sub-
volcanoes have been identified. system aboard the craft is designed to nearly automate its
Most of Io's volcanoes are extremely violent - similar activities during the next four months so that Voyager 1
to Vesuvius or Etna. Some evidence of Hawaiian-type vol- needs minimal attention while Voyager 2 takes center stage.
canoes exists - vents through which the hot magma oozes
rather than erupts. Infrared studies have observed lava lakes
which may be as much as 400 degrees Fahrenheit warmer MoreResultsfrom Voyager1
than the surrounding surface.
The source of Jupiter's hot sulfur torus is no longer a There is much for the second spacecraft to look
mystery, But the questions are now: What heats Io? Does forward to - another look at the ring, measurements of the
the volcanic material come from the core or is it scraped extremely active solar wind, closer looks at some of the
from the underside of the continually overlaid crust? What satellites, and different views of all, including the ever-
is the propulsive gas forcing the material out through the changing face of Jupiter. And Voyager 2 will not be sub-
volcanic vents, since Io's surface appears waterless? jected to as severe a radiation hazard as was its sister ship,
One theory is that a tug of war between Jupiter and since it will fly further from the planet.
the other Galilean satellites has created gravitational tidal
forces that have meited lo's core. Or, Io may have an
A Ringed Planet
extremely thin crust which is constantly being scraped
away by the interior heat, shot out through the volcanic
vents, redistributed on the surface, covered over by subse- Floating 35,000 miles above Jupiter's visible cloud
quent eruptions, and continually recycled in this way, with tops, a wafer-thin ring of rocky particles poses a new prob-
some ions and neutrals escaping into space to form the lem. No longer is the question: Why are some planets
sulfur torus. (Saturn and Uranus) ringed? But: Why are the inner, terres-
Voyager 2 will take a series of photos of Io over a trial planets not ringed?
10-hour period to make a time{apse sequence of the
exploding volcanoes and their dynamics. Bowshock
As Voyager 1 plunged under the south pole of Io, it
was expected to pass through a highly-charged region
On its inbound leg, Yoyager 1 recorded at least five
known as the flux tube, where as much as 1 million
amperes of electrical current travel along magnetic field crossings of the bowshock as Jupiter's magnetosphere
Iines connecting the satellite with the planet. Preliminary expanded and receded under varying pressure from the
data indicate that Voyager 1 did not pass through the flux solar wind. The bowshock is the line of interaction between
tube; the location of the tube had shifted from predictions. the particles trapped by a planet's magnetic field and the
particles in the solar wind. The first crossing was February
Europa 28, about 6 million kilometers (3.8 million miles) from the
planet. The last crossingwas at 3.6 million kilometers (2.1
Voyager t had only a distant look at Europa, the million miles).
third satellite from the planet, but the photos are tantzhz-
ing and Yoyager 2 wrll fly half a million miles closer to the
Radiation
amber-colored satellite, returning pictures at about the reso-
lution of Yoyager 1's Jupiter photos. Slightly smaller than
Io, Europa is also a rocky body seemingly coated with ice Ycsyzger 1 withstood 10OO times the lethal dose of
and frost. Dark streaks 80 by 1900 to 29O0 km (50 by radiation for humans as it passed between Jupiter and Io.
1200 to 1800 mi) may representa system of large fractures As expected, several of the instruments were saturated, but
or faults on the surface. recovered well once outside the danger zone.
M /SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO.42 MAY 1 1" 1979
B.V. (before Voyager), the two largest and outermost But the intriguing features on Ganymede are the
Galilean satellites, Ganymede and Callisto, were thought to sinuous systems of ridges and grooves traversing the surface
be very similar. Both are larger than the planet Mercury. like so many tire tracks. Some of these cracks display off-
Both are relatively dark (but not as dark as Earth's moon), sets similar to shifts in streets and streams caused on Earth
indicating a surface covered with dark rock rather than by crust movement or Earthquakes, implying that the same
white ice. Both are very lightweight, however, having a sort of processes exist on Ganymede. Some areas of the
density about twice that of water - inconsistent with a satellite appear to have piled-up crustal segments similar to
rocky composition. ice jams at Earth's polar regions.
There the similarities begin to end. Callisto has Crustal movements on Earth are caused by convec-
perhaps the most ancient surface of any of Jupiter's Gali- tion cells generated by heat from the core. There may have
lean satellites. Its crust is cratered like that of Mercury, been, or perhaps still is, enough heat from radioactive ele-
indicating little recent change. Countless impact craters mar ments within Ganymede to warm the mantle, create con-
its surface, probably the result. of meteorite bombardment vective currents, and thus crack the icy crust.
over the past four billion years. It is mountainless. The
features are shallow - there are no sharp rims or deep can-
Voyager 2 in Observatory Phase
yons. Questions arise' Could it be that Callisto's crust is
not strong enough to support geological relief? That moun'
Images of Jupiter now being obtained every two
tains sink and canyons rise on a sea of slush?
hours by Voyager 2 will be used to create a time{apse
One explanation is that Callisto has a muddy or rocky
movie sequence of the Great Red Spot. The movie will
core, with an icy crust floating on a sea of warmer ice. At
cover the period from April 24 to May 27, as the spacecraft
times, the warmer ice leaks out of the interior, freezing on
zooms 2l million km (13 miilion mi) closer to the giant
the surface at temperaftrres more than 200 degrees below
planet, and will show large-scalechanges in the atmosphere
zero (Fahrenheit). Splattered meteorites and captured inter-
since Voyager 1's visit.
planetary dust coat the surface with dark debris, accounting
In addition to the imaging, Jovian-system scansin the
for the darkness of the satellite.
ultraviolet and field and particle measurements of the solar
Ganymede's surface may be only a quarter as ancient wind near Jupiter comprise most of the spacecraft's daily
as its sister - perhaps only one billion years old - since its routine thoughout May. Calibrations of other instruments
crust shows much more evidence of recent change. Its icy and measurements of the radio emissions are also per-
surface lacks the numbers of impact craters, and the exist- formed regulariy.
ing ones are surrounded by bright rays of material tossed A trajectory correction maneuver is planned for May
out by the impact of meteorites. The bright spots might be 25 to adjust the spacecraft's aiming point, and a fourth
fresh ice, while the dark ones could be "dirt" gouged out of maneuver is planned in late June just 12 days before closest
internal material. approach to the planet.
M/SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO. 44 JUNE 1979
MINIATURE SOLAR SYSTEM - An artist's montage of Jupiter ring encircling Jupiter and a time-lapse sequence of lo and its eight
and its four largest satellites, the Galileans, shows the bodies in their active volcanoes. Voyager 2 will see opposite faces of the satellites
relative positions, although not to scale with respect to Jupiter. than seen in March by Voyager 1, first encountering the outermost
Startling new discoveries by Voyager t have resulted in additions to Galilean, Callisto, (lower right) then Ganymede, Europa (centerl,
Voyager 2's mission design, including observations of a faint particle Amalthea (not shown), Jupiter, and lastly lo {left).
Voyager 2 Operations
SOLARW I N D
llt VOYAGER
1
I
II
7,000,o00 mi
MAGNETOTAIL PASSAGE - Voyager 2 will spenda longer period
talcing measurements in Jupiter's magnetosphere, perhaps as long as
30 days, in comparison to nearly 13 days for Voyager 1. On its out-
bound journey, Voyager 2 may cross the magnetopause as far as
10 million miles from Jupiter.
10,000,000
LOW
PRESSURE
SOLAR HIGH LOW
WIND PRESSURE P R E S S U R E
fi:K
BOWSHOCK
flowed, sometimes causing the bow shock to overtake the spacecraft
BOW SHOCK CROSSINGS - Voyager 2's first crossing of Jupiter's
bow shock came July 2 at a distance of about 7 million km {4.4 again. The bow shock is a surface separating the essentially undis-
million mi) from the planet' At least eleven crossings have been turbed supersonic solar wind from the deflected subsonic solar wind
noted by the plasma instrument, magnetometers, and plasma wave outside the magnetosphere where particles are trapped by the
instrument as of noon on= uly 5, as the solar pressure ebbed and p l a n e t ' s m a g n e t i cf i e l d .
B A D I OS C I E N C E
E A R T HO C C U L T A T I O N
MANEUVER
{VIEWED F R O ME A R T H )
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RecordedMrssionStatus(2.13)354-7237
Institute
California of Technology S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
Pasadena. Californla O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
C R A T E R E D G A N Y M E D E - T O P : F r o m 1 3 8 , O 0 0k m ( 8 6 , 0 0 0 m i ) , icy material. The dark patches of heavily cratered terrain may be
Ganymede, largest of Jupiter's 13 moons, shows bright young ancient icy material formed before the overlying grooved terrain.
craters; light. linear stripes resembling the outer rings of a large Below right: From closer still (85,0O0 kml, this area of Ganymede
impact basin; and light and dark terrain, Below left: Another region shows a large variety of impact craters of different ages, The
of Ganymede, observed on July 9 from about 1O0,0OOkm (62,0O0 brightest craters are the youngest; the ejecta blankets from meteor
mi), shows numerous impact craters, many with bright ray systems. impacts fade with age. In the center of this mosaic is a bright patch
The large ray crater at upper center is about 150 km (93 miles) in representing rebounding of the floor of the crater. The dirty ice has
diameter. The rough mountainous terrain at lower right is the outer lost all topography except for faint circular patterns. Curved troughs
portion of a large fresh impact basin which was formed later than and ridges marking an ancient enormous impact basin resemble
most of the other terrain. At the bottom of the mosaic, portions of features on Callisto, The basin itself has been destroyed by later
grooved terrain transect older portions, possibly the result of newer geologic processes;only the ring features remain.
L I T P L U M E S - T w o o f l o ' s a c t i v e v o l c a n o e s( P 5 a n d P 6 l a r e h i g h - EXPLOSIVE lo - Of eight active volcanoes sighted in Voyager 1's
lighted on the satellite's bright limb, spewing materials to a height of pictures of lo last March, Voyager 2 had an opportunity to sight
about 100 km (62 mil. This photo is one of about 200 which will be seven of them. Of the seven seen by Voyager 2, six are still active,
used to generate a time-lapse movie of lo's volcanic activity, The and three are seen here on the limb of the satellite. On the bright
photos were taken on July 9 during a ten-hour period just after l i m b a t l e f t , i l l u m i n a t e d b y s u n l i g h t ,a r e P l u m e 5 ( u p p e r ) a n d P l u m e
closest approach to Jupiter, at a range from lo of about 1 million 6 (lower), each about 100 km (62 mil high. On the darker limb at
km. The sunlit crescent of lo grew progressively slimmer with right, ifluminated by Jupiter, is Plume 2, about 185 km (115 mil
advancing night as Voyager 2 moved around to the satellite's dark high and 325 km (200 mil wide. Plume 2 is about one-and-one-half
side. times larger than it was when it was discovered last March. The first
and largest volcano discovered on lo, Plume 1, was not active,
FRONT PAGE:
The ovals travel across the planet at a different rate than the
Great Red Spot; the white oval seen south of the Red Spot in the
above Voyager 2 mosaic is not the same one se€n there by Voyager
1 in March 1979, The oval in upper right photo is currently west of
the Spot, while the oval in the photo at lower right is currently east
of it,
The Great Red Spot and its three companion white clouds
shown here all rotate anticyclonically (counterclockwise in the
southern hemispheref, indicating that they are all meteorologically
similar. Recirculating currents are seen to the €ast of all four
toatures,
Current theories for the reddish color of the Great Red Spot
suppose that phosphine (PH3l, a combination of one phosphorous
atom and th?ee hydrogen atoms, is converted by the sun,s ultra-
violet rays to red phosphorous (P2 or P4) when it reaches the top
of the cloud.
High radiation levels caused some expected problems Radio signals from the spacecraft will pass through
in transmitting commands to the spacecraft near closest the northern solar corona, causing strong, measurable
approach to the planet, Due to a failure in April, 1978, the changes in the signals. Small-scale variations of plasma in
ship's only remaining radio receiver is unable to follow a the solar region will be studied, and the plasma density of
changing radio signal. Commands must be sent repeatedly, the solar wind and corona will be mapped.
at varying frequencies, until the receiver locks up on the
signal. (The signal frequency changes as it travels from The Earth and most spacecraft orbit within seven
Earth to the spacecraft due to the Doppler effect.) In addi degrees of the sun's equatorial plane. In August and
tion, the receiver is sensitive to heating effects such as those September, a parade of planetary probes including both
caused by high radiation. The command receiver stabilized Voyagers, Pioneer 11, and Pioneer Venus will be aligned to
soon after closest approach and has operated well since. provide multiple, correlating observations,
M/SS/ONSTATUS REPORTNO.48 SEPTEMBER12, 1979
C R E P E{ C ) R I N G
N O R T HN O R T HT E M P E R A T EB E L I
c A s s l ND
t rvlsroN
N O R T HT E M P E R A T EB E L T
/-
O U T E R( A ) R I N G
km
"F RING"
SATURN DlAlvlETEff 119.000 74,000
F R O MS A T U R NT O ,
POSSTALE C RING 12,510 7,410
E RING B RING 31,730 19,720
O U T SD
I E cAsstNtDtvtstoN 56,870 35,340
A RING A RING 61,660 38,320
O U T E R E D G EO F A R I N G 77,250 44,000
F RING 80.470 50,000
S O U T HT E M P E R A I EB E L T
\aout* s o u r H T E M P E R A Tat t L I
S O U T HE O U A T O R I A LB E L T
\ aou* PoLAR REGToN
rings, the radiation intensiry readings dropped dramatically, planet's cloud tops. The spacecraft was about 2500 km
indicating radiation absorption by the rings. (1550 rni) below the ring plane. This body may be the same
as a body detected by the imaging syst€m a few days
Until Pioneer 11 crossed Saturn's bow shock on earlier, and both may be sightings of Janus, the innermost
August 3l at a distance of about 1.4 million km (895,000 and smallest of Saturn's ten known satellites.
mi) from the planet, it was uncertain if Saturn even pos-
sesseda magnetic field. The bow shock is the line at which
supersonic particles streaming from the sun are slowed to Launched on April 5, 1973, Pioneer 11 was never
subsonic speedsnear a planet's magnetii field boundaries. A intended to see Saturn, It was the second man-made object
planet's magnetic field tends to trap radiation particles and to successfully traverse the then-unknown region of the
sweep them around in spacewith the planet's rotation. asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, and
also the second spacecraft to observe Jupiter, in December
Saturn's magnetic pole may be offset from its spin "J,974.However, at that point, a decision was made to sling-
axis by as little as 1o, making it unique among planets. Most shot the sturdy craft 167 degrees back across the solar
of the planets thus far studied have an offset of about 10o, system to its bonus encounter with Saturn. In six years,
causing a wobble in their rotating magnetic fields and allow- Pioneer 11 has crossed two billion miles of space. Now it
ing definition of precise longitudinal lines for mapping and will head out of the solar system and toward the stars, in
tracking features. almost exactly the opposite direction of Pioneer 10, which
encountered Jupiter in December 1973 and has already
Dynamo currents of magnetic fields are thought to crossed the orbit of Uranus.
exist in the metallic hydrogen below the outer gaseous
atmosphere, Saturn's field source is deeper within the
planet than at Jupiter, resulting in a more regular magnetic Weighing 258 kilograms (568 pounds) at launch,
field. Pioneer 11 carries 12 instruments and conducts 14 investi-
gations. Spinning constantly for stabilization (at a rate of
The regular magnetosphere and iow radiation levels 7.8 revolutions per minute at Saturn), Pioneer is powered
bode well for the oncoming Voyagers. by two radioisotope thermoelectric generators and carries a
9-foot-diameter dish antenna which points toward Earth to
Like Jupiter, Saturn has no solid surface and ground- send and receive signals through the Deep Space Network.
based observations have revealed bandedness in its atmo-
sphere similar to Jupiter's belts and zones. Pioneer images
suggest there may be twice as many belts and zones on The Pioneer missions are managed and controlled for
Saturn, Preliminary analysis shows a scalloped region sug- NASA by Ames Research Center, Mountain View, Califor-
gestive of a jet stream below the north polar region, and nia, The spacecraft was built by the Space Systems Division
another scallop at the northern edge of the equatorial zone, of TRW, Redondo Beach, California.
suggestiveof an upwelling feature.
Already a focal point for Voyager's explorations Pioneer 11's successstrengthens Voyager 2's pros-
because of its methane atmosphere, Saturn's largest satellite pects of encountering Uranus in January, 1986. Voyager 2
Titan has become even more interesting as it is sometimes is currently on a trajectory which will take it to Uranus
inside, sometimes outside, Saturn's magnetosphere, due to after its Saturn Encounrer in August 1981, but its flight
varying pressure of the solar wind. path could be changed should Yoyager 1 fail ro meers its
objectives at Saturn for any reason - including damage
Ten minutes after crossing the ring plane on its from radiation or ring particles, which now appears
inbound journey, Pioneer 11's chargedparticle instruments unlikely. Voyager 1's trajectory was chosen specifically to
detected the deep shadow of a body with a radius of about observe Titan at close range, while Voyager 2's flight path
100 to 300 km at about 150,000 km (93,200 mi) from the was specifically chosen to allow a flybv of Uranus,
M/SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO.49 OCTOBER1 8, 1979
Makethat1 4 KnownJovianSatellites
iti,,, i:ri
i
'
:.1
i
";.
NEW MOON - A new moon of Jupiter, the white streak to the the Jupiter ring seen in this photo as a gray diagonal band acrossthe
right, was revealed in this computer enhanced photograph taken by picture. The other white streaks are star tracks. Both the track of
NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft on July 8, 1979 as the spacecraft flew the moon and the stars are the result of a long exposure.
p a s t t h e g i a n t p l a n e t . T h e m o o n , c a l l e d 1 9 7 9 J 1 , o r b i t s a t t h e e d g eo f
N a t i o n aA e r o n a u l r a
c sn d
SpaceAdmrnistration
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o nS t a t u s( 2 1 3 \3 5 4 - 7 2 3 7
Jet PropulsionLaboratory
Ca'o'^'a lrsttlute o' Tecf'^ology S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a . C a l r f o r na P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i oOn f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
ocl 24, 1979
JULY9' 1979
o M A R5 , 1 9 7 9
SUN
Make that 14 Known Jovian Satellites Another Caltech researcher, Charles T. Kowal, dis-
coveredJupiter's 13th satellite in September 1974. Another
Yet another phenomenon has been added to possible moon may have been seen in Earth-basedphotos
Voyager's already long list of discoveries - a fourteenth by Kowal several years ago and awaits confirmation,
satellite at Jupiter.
UPDATE
The newly-identified satellite lies at the outer edge of
the ring plane, but inside the orbit of Amalthea, at about Communications from Voyager 1 were temporarily
57,800 kilometers (36,000 miles) above Jupiter's ctoud- lost on October 16 when the spacecraftdid not acquire the
tops. Estimated to be 30 to 40 kilometers (18 to 25 miles) star Canopus after a 22-hour cruise science maneuver.
in diameter, it has been temporarily designated I979ll Cruise maneuvers are performed in a radio blackout since
(following the guidelines of the International Astronomical the antenna moves off Earth-line, but radio signalsfrom the
Union), OtOnot arrive at Earth when expected after the maneu-
;:::
With an orbital period of 7 hours 8 minutes and a
velocity of 30 kilometers per second (67,000 miles per The cruise maneuver consists of steering the space-
hour), 1979J1 is the fastest moving satellite in the solar craft through a seriesof 10 yaw and 25 roll turns to allow
system. the fields and particles instruments to view the entire sky.
Normally stabilized on three axes using the light intensities
Because of its proximity to the ring, there is specula-
of the Sun and Canopus for reference, the spacecraft must
tion that the satellite may directly influence the composi-
lose lock on the star to perform the turns.
tion of the ring by either supplying or sweeping out ring
particles. However, when the star tracker began its search for
Canopus after the maneuver, it fixed on Alpha Centauri,
The discovery was made during analysis of photo-
mistaking it for-Canopus. In this position, the antenna was
graphs taken by Yoyager 2 last July less than 24 hours
pointed about 5' away from Earth.
before closest approach to the planet. Although the object
in the photographs was initially thought to be a star trail, When the situation was analyzed, the Tidbinbilla,
an exhaustive data search found no star in the vicinity. Australia tracking station's powerful 8O-kilowatt power
Another high resolution photograph of the same area carrier was used to send commands through the sidelobe of
showed the same portion of the ring, the same object, and the spacecraft antenna to switch from the high gain
trails of known stars. The differing angles and lengths of the antenna, which has a narrow beamwidth, to the wider
star trails and the trail of the object led to verification that beamwidth low gain antenna to make further commanding
this was indeed a satellitc. easier.
Voyager Imaging Team member G. Edward Danielson The spacecraft was then commanded to roll another
of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and Cal- 56.8 degrees.At the end of this roll, it was Earth-pointed
tech graduate student David Jewitt are credited with the and within 1 degree of Canopus. After the spacecraft signal
discovery. The orbit was calculated independently by was acquired at Earth, Voyager 1 was commanded to
Jewitt and optical navigation engineer Stephen Synnott of acquire Canopus as a reference star and to return to its high
JPL. qain antenna.
ulletirr
M/SS/ON SIA TUS REPORTNO.sO JANUARY3, 1980
"An exciting, rewardingyear has draun to a close,and I gain antenna to the low-gain antenna, which has a much
would like to thank tbe Voyager Flight Team membersand broader beamwidth.
all tbe support groups for a job exceptionally uell done, During interplanetary cruise, the spacecraft normally sta-
Tbe results from Jupiter haoe sparked tbe uorld's interest bilizes itself by tracking the Sun and the reference srar
and imagination, An equally cballengingand exciting goal Canopus, However, following the sequence abort, the space-
lies before us tbis year - Voyager L's encounter uitb Sat- craft was stabilized by its internal gyros and was Sun-
urn. Witb your continued dedicatedsupport, I am sure ue pointed only. It was initially assumed that the spacecraft
will be able to satisfy the bigb expectations establisbedby was tracking a star other than Canopus, but two attempts
our Jupiter successes," to re-orient the spacecraft from possible stars failed,
Ray Ileacock On December 16, comma4ds were sent to perform a
Voyager Proje ct Manager "sun cone", searching for Earth by rotating the antenna
around the Sun with an Sooffset, stopping at sixteen differ-
ent points. At the third point, ground stations picked up a
Update strong signal as the high-gain antenna beam swept across rhe
Earth, Six minutes of data were received before the se-
Voyager 1 Operations Back to Normal quence continued to the next point. At completion of the
search sequence, Voyager 1 was commanded back to the
Voyager 1's operationsreturned to normal on December third point, and the signal was received by the Australian
20, L979, nearly seven days after the Saturn-bound space- tracking station neatly 72 hours after the emergency began,
craft failed to re-orient its antenna toward Earth at the end After analysis of the spacecraft's tape-recorded and com-
of a course correction on December 13. puter memories data from the course correction and se-
Currently 970 million kilometers (602 million miles) quence abort, the spacecraft was commanded to return to
from Earth, Voyager 1 is Earth-oriented, responding to its reference star Canopus on December 19, and by noon on
commands, and transmitting data. AII science instruments December 20, all sysrems aboard Yoyager t had been re-
are operating normally, and the trajectory correction itself turned to normal.
was successful.
Voyager 1's failure to re-establish communications with
Earth by regaining its celestial references has been traced to Photopolarimetry Expected at Saturn with Voyager 2
an internal communications error in the spacecraft. The
combination of a mode change command word which vio- Tests of Voyager 2's photopolarimeter on January 2,
lated computer sequencing constraints and a parity error 1980, indicate that the instrument is stable and capable of
touched off a series of events which caused the pre-pro- limited operation. The iristrument, which studies reflected
grammed re-orientation sequence to halt. Since launch in sunlight to determine atmospheric, surface, and ring com-
September l977,Yoyager !. has communicared over 37 mil- position, will operate in two modes at Saturn (August
Iion commands between the CCS and AACS (two on-board 1981), collecting both color and polarization data. Earlier
computers) with no previous parity error, which involves a in the flight, the PPS experienced problems with its polar-
bit-count check in the computer software. izatton analyzer wheel, and may have component damage
The first indication of problems came at approximately due to Jupiter's intense radiation.
2:15 p.m. (PST) on December 13, when the Deep Space Voyager 1's photopolarimeter was declared inactive in
Network tracking stations did not receive the spacecraft December 1979 afrer tests indicated that its photomultiplier
signal as expected after the course correction. The maneu- tube, which converts weak light signals to strong electrical
ver is performed in a radio blackout since the high-gain signals, has virtually no sensitivity remaining. This fact,
antenna dish is turned away from Earth. A fainr signal was combined with an electrical problem in the motor drive
detected through the DSN's special radio science equip- circuit which turns the instrument's light analysis wheels,
ment, and was racked throughout the recovery. resulted in the decision to abandon the instrument. Ana-
At various times, commands were sent to switch the lysts concluded that there would be little or no scientific
spacecraft's receivers and S-band rransmirter from the high- value in any d,atathis instrument could return.
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Administration
Jet Propulsion Laboratory RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
C a l i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a .C a l i f o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
I
M/SS/ON SIATUS REPORTNO.51, MAY 7 , 1980
ITS SATURN! - Computer enhancement of this photo as well as one of its moons, Rhea (lower left). Voyager 1
taken by Voyager I on March 20, 1980, shows Saturn's rings was 312 million kilometers from the planet at this point.
America's most prestigious space award, the National A 15th satellite of Jupiter has been discovered in
Space Club's Goddard Memorial Trophy, has been pre- photographs taken by Voyager 1 in March 1979. Tenta-
sented to the Voyager Project by President Carter. In a tively named L979 J2, the satellite orbits between the satel-
March 24 ceremony at the White House, the president said: lites Amalthea and Io, about 151,000 kilometers above
Jupiter's cloudtops. Its orbital period is 16 hours 16
minutes and its diameter is estimated to be about 70 to 80
". . . tbe team tbat's made tbis fligbt possible and kilometers.
also bad sucb tremendous success in bringing tbe
images and tbe knowledge so clearbl back to Eartb L979 JZ was discovered by Stephen Synnott of the
to be sbared by scientists and atbers interested in navigation team while verifying the existence of the 14th
astronomy and our own solar system, deserae(sic) satellite, 1979 Jl, discovered last fall in photographs from
the bigb est accolades." Voyager 2's encounter with Jupiter last July.
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Administration
RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
C a l i f o r n i al n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
1979 J2 - The newly-discovered 15th
moon of Jupiter (bottom) is seenwith
its shadow (top, at end of streak in
clouds) against the face of the planet
in this computer-enhancedphoto
taken by Voyager1 on March 4,1979.
The satellite was discovered in April
1980 during continuing analysis of
Voyager photos. It is 70 to 80 kilo-
meters in diameter and orbits Jupiter
every 16 hours 16 minutes at a dis'
tance of 151,000kilometersabovethe
cloudtops. This is the secondsatellite
: : r j r r : 1 : :j : j : r : l : r t l r t l l : j : : r r i l i : c ! : t i l l
Update
mand subsystem. This load will activate should Yoyager 2
Both Voyagers are in good health and on target for lose its remaining command receiver before Saturn encoun-
their respective Saturn encounters. Routine calibrations and ter. The program provides a tremendous improvement over
tests, as well as sampling of the interplanetary medium, the previous BML in the amount of science data that would
continue for both spacecraft, while Voyager 1 is taking be returned from Saturn, and extends the data-gathering
periodic images of Saturn for calibration and navigation capability beyond Saturn to Uranus.
purposes.
Both spacecraft are well within the power and fuel
Voyager 1 performed a cruise science maneuver on allocations for their respective missions. Before launch,
February 20, 1980, making a series of yaw and roll turns to each ship was loaded with 105 kilograms of hydrazine fuel.
allow calibration of the magnetometer and other instru- This propellant is stored in a tank mounted inside the ring
ments to view the entire sky. The maneuver was entirely of electronics compartments and carried to the thrusters via
successful; however, analysis of the telemetry showed slight "plumbing" lines.
differences from the predicted command issuance between
the two computer command subsystem processors' This is Three radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTG)
the fourth instance of command problems aboard Voyager on each spacecraft convert the heat from nuclear fuel decay
1 since Jupiter encounter; therefore, a Spacecraft Anomaly to electrical energy to operate the engineering and science
Team has been formed to further investigate the on-board mechanisms, Developed by the U.S. Department of Energy,
command problem. The team will assessthe adequacy of such "atomic batteries" provide power for missions travel-
current immediate protection programmed into the on- ling distances too far from the Sun to utilize solar cell
board computers; determine what diagnostic tests might be arrays for power conversion. The nuclear fuel for the gen-
conducted; determine what failure or noise mechanism erators is plutonium dioxide which is chemicaliy-inert and
could have led to the observed problems; and investigate has a long half{ife (87.8 years) and low-shielding require-
the feasibility of additional fault protection measures. The ments. Heat generated by the radioisotope fuel is converted
team's study should be completed by July 1, allowing time into electricai energy by silicon germanium thermocouples:
for corrective measures before the Saturn encounter activi- The RTGs are kept at a constant electrical load by the
ties begin in late August. Voyager L is scheduled to move power subsystem, which dumps excesspower into spaceas
off Earth{ine several times during the encounter period heat. Power output aboard the spacecraftis now about 438
with a high internal command activity, thus driving the watts. The power usage of the science instruments at Satum
necessiry to implement protective measures to assurea suc- will be about 99 watts.
cessful Saturn encounter.
Signals between Earth and Yoyager 1 now travel 61
Safeguards for Voyager 2's mission have also been minutes 19 seconds one-way. The spacecraft is about 1.1
implemented. An updated "backup mission load" (BML) billion kilometers from Earth, and its velocity (with respect
program is now stored in the spacecraft's computer com- to the Sun) is 21 kilometers per second.
M/SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO 52 AUGUST27, 1980
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Administration
Jet Propulsion Laboratory R e c o r d e dM i s s i o nS t a t u s( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 7 2 3 7
C a l i f o r n i al n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
TCM5
4/9/79
( T C M 6N O TR E O U T R E D )
LAUNCH
TCMT
tI''tt
irt'tt*-tot"t EARTH
1 2 / 7/ 7 9
cLoSESTAPPROACH e/5/77
I N B O U N D( D E S C E N D I N G )
348,890
km
R I N GP L A N E E D G EO F
CROSSING SOLARWIND
SATURN -1990
1 1 / ' 1 1 / 8 Q I. 1 : 2 3 P M 1 ' t/ 1 3 / A O
11/12/AO,5.'t1
PM
S + 21 HOURS
CLOSESTAPPROACH
NEARE N C O U N T ETR
EST 1 8 4 , 0 0 0k m
8/19-20/80
12t15t80
8/22/8Q
7/1/80 10/24/8Q
TEST
AND
TRAINING O U T B O U N(DA S C E N D I N G )
TITAN R I N GP L A N EC R O S S I N G
9/3/aO 1 1/ 2 / 8 0
1 1/ 1 1/ 8 O , 1 1 : 0 5 P M 11/12/80, 9.45 PM
,,MOVIE" 10/6/80 TCMS
1Q/'lO/AO TCM9 CLOSESTAPPROACH
9/ 12-14/80 1 1/ 7 / 8 0 TOOOkm
S O L A RC O N J U N C .
pacrFrc
forlirtraor, ro^r"..rcErproFsrGNAL.
S T A N D A R DT I M E
2 D A T E S A B E G R E G O S 1 A NC A L E N D A R
3 D I S T A N C E SA R E F R O M C E N T E BO F B O D I E S
4. ONE wAY LIGHT TIME = I HB 24 MtN 47 SECAT
SATURN CLOSEST APPROACH
5. TCM = TRAJ€CTORY CORR€CTION MANEUVER
Saturn Encounter Phases the entire planet in one frame. Two by two mosaics (four
pictures to cover the entire planet) will signal the start of
The Saturn Encounrer activities have been divided the next phase, Far Encounter 1. Voyager 1 will be 16
into five phases, arbitrarily chosen based on the field of million miles from the ringed planet.
view of the narrow angle camera in relation to the distance
Within another ten days, the Far Encounter 2 phase
to the planet. The five phases are Observatory, Far En-
will begin when 2x2 mosaics no longer suffice ro cover the
counter 1, Far Encounter 2, Near Encounter, and Post entire planet. On November 2,Yoyager 1 will be 8.8 million
Encounter,
miles from Saturn, The final Voyager 1 trajectory correc-
Observatory starts August 22, about 82 days before
tion maneuver is scheduledfor November 7.
closest approach, and runs nine weeks. During this period, a
The 47-hour Near Encounter phase begins November
long time base history of the Saturn sysrem will be com-
Il, 26 hours before Saturn ciosest approach, and runs
piled.
through November 13, 21 hours after closest approach. At
Daily ultravioler scans of the system will search for
approximately 11:05 p.m. PST on November 11, signals
hydrogen sources. The fields and particles instruments will
from Voyager I's closest approach (7000 km) to Titan will
monitor the interplanetary medium near Saturn,
arrive ar Earth. Eighteen minures later, the spacecraft will
Two time{apse movies will be compiled from photo-
dip below the ring plane. Eighteen hours after Titan closest
graphs taken during this period. Color "zoom" movies will
approach, Voyager I will make its ciosest approach to
be compiled from photographs taken every 2 hours 3.2
Saturn on November 12. It will be below the rings, 184,000
minutes over about two months. These movies will focus on
km from the shadowed southern hemisphere. The signai
five longitudes as the spacecraft "zooms" in on the planet.
will reach Earth about 5:11 p.m. Four and a half hours
A second color movie will be compiled from phorographs
later, Voyager 1 will make its ourbound, ascending ring
taken every 4.8 minutes during a 42-hotr period September
plane crossing.
12-14, coveringfour Saturn rorarions.
Radio experiments to study the sun's corona will be Voyager 1's observations of Saturn will continue in
performed during solar conjunction, when the sun will be the Post Encounter phase rhrough December 15. It will
between the Earth and spacecraft. From September 3 then continue to observe the interplanetary medium for as
through October 6, the angle defined by Voyager, rhe Iong as we can track the spacecraft, participating in celestial
earth, and the sun, will be 15 degrees or less, hampering mechanics and solar experiments with other interplanetary
radio communications, but allowing study of rhe sun as the spacecraft still being tracked,
radio signals pass through its corona. If Voyager 1 is still being tracked ten years hence, we
A tralectory correction maneuver to adjust the flight may observe the edge of the influence of the sun's magnetic
path will be done on October 10. Numerous other calibra- field, some 20 to 30 times farther from the sun than Earth
tions will also be done during the Observatory phase. is. Voyager 1 will be on a solar system escape trajectory
By October 24, 19 days before closest approach, the that will take it out of the ecliptic plane - that plane in
narrow angle camera's field of view will no longer capture which most of the solar svstem's bodies lie.
VOYAGERI SATURNENCOUNTER Test and Training
NOV. il-t3, t980
The Voyager Flight Team has been cerrified ready for
S U N O C C U L T A T I OZ
NO N E Saturn Encounter operations after a seven-week test and
EARTH training period. A key part of test and training was simula-
OCCULTATION
tions of Murphy's Law No. 1: "Whatever can go wrong, will
go wrong, at the worst possible time." Some of the simu-
HYPERION lated problems included fire in the mission control area
tt
II
during planned commanding, requiring relocation of oper-
tl ations to another building; incorrect real-time command
t/ ENCELADUS requests; ground-based compurer failure during satellite
tl
tt
MIMAS
pointing updates and optical navigation; apparent propul-
sion hardware failure during a simulated trajectory correc-
\\ tion maneuver; bad data from an instrument; and spacecraft
km computer failrrres, A prime objective of the test and train-
TITAN 7,OOO
ing period has been to sharpen all skills so that norhing is
TETHYS 4l7,OOO done by rote.
SATURN 184.OOO
MI,MAS 89,OOO I
ENCELAOUS 201,OO0 2oolodrm -1- Test and training climaxed August 18-19 with the
DIONE 163,000 z Ftf{b
Near Encounter Test, a simulation of L8 hours of the
RHEA
HYPERION
73,OOO
878,000
T -t/ period of closest approach to Saturn. A near-duplicate of
TITAN the near encounter computer sequence was sent to Voyager
1 and activated. Alternate pointing commands were issued
to the scan platform to avoid pointing the cameras directly
V I E W N O R M A LT O s u NI at the sun during the test. At Saturn, the planet will block
SATURN EOUATOR EARTHI
the sun's light during rhese sequences, giving occultation
Note: Distances are approximate closest approach measured from data. The spacecraft will be oriented by its inertial gyro
center of body. Saturn closest approach will be about 184,000 km system during. the near encounter phase, as there will be
from the center of the planet. or 124,000 km from the cloudtops, several spacecraft maneuvers about the roll, pitch, and yaw
using a Saturn radius of 60,000 km. axes.
V O Y A G E RI
JUPITER JUPITER
I JUL79 5 MAR79
5 S E P7 7
20 AUG 77
PLUTO
8/ 8 q
SATURN
t2 NOV 80
SATURN
URANUS V O Y A G E R2
25 AUG 8I N E P T UE
N
24 JAN 86
24 AUG 89
MISSION PLAN - After its flyby of the Saturn system in November, Voyager 1 will be on an escape
trajectory from the solar system which will carry it above the ecliptic plane. Voyager 2 will reach Saturn in
August 1981 and then has the opportunity to continue to encounters with the planets Uranus and Neptune,
Neither ship will come close to the solar system's ninth planet, Pluto, in its 248-year trip around the sun.
Update Correlation of data taken by both spacecraft shows
cyclical bursts of non-thermal radio noise from Saturn
Voyager 1 occurring at this regular time interval, with a noise fre-
quency near 200 kHz.
Voyager 1 began its concentrated observations of
The emissions have been distinguished from Jovian
Saturn on August 22,82 d,aysbefore its closest approach to
and solar emissions and background noise by several
the ringed planet. Travelling with a heliocentric velocity of
criteria: 1) the signal intensity is higher for Voyager 1,
2O.4 km/s (45,675 miles an hour), the spacecraft is about
which is nearer Sarurn rhan is Voyager 2i 2) Yoyager I
109 million kilometers (67.6 million miles) from the planet.
detects the signal about 10 minutes before Voyager 2 does;
Radio signals between earth and the spacecraft travel over
and 3) the spectral characrer and polarization ofthe events
1.4 billion kilometers (901 million miles) in 80 minutes.
are distinct from Jovian and solar emissions.
The spacecraft has experienced minor hardware
Such precise measurementsof Saturn's rotation rate
problems in the Canopus star tracker and the scan platform,
are impossible from Earth due to both the great distance
but neither is expected ro pose a serious problem to the
(nearly a billion miles) and the fact that Saturn's peak radio
planned Saturn encounter activities.
emissions fall in a-radio communications band used on
Voyager 1's Canopus star tracker has a problem
earth. Pioneers 10 and 11 did not carry this type ofinsrru-
which limits its available fields of view. Investigarion inro
mentation.
the problem shows that all required stars can be tracked,
Saturn has been thought to have a regular magnetic
with the possible exception of the star Vega which is re-
field and little offset between the magnetic pole and spin
quired after Saturn closest approach. The back-up star
axis (Earth's offset is 23.5"), bur the ability to determine a
tracker has been tested and could be used if needed after
rotation rate for Sarurn implies a deviation from perfect
appropriate calibrations are completed.
axial symmetry of the planetary magneric field.
The Canopus star tracker helps stabilize the space-
craft and keep it properly oriented by tracking the earrh,
sun, and a reference star (nominally Canopus). 1979J3 Makes 16
In addition, Voyager 1's scan platform has ex-
perienced a "creep" of 0.17 degreesfor negarive slews in the A new small satellite orbiting near the edge of
elevation axis. The creep seems to occur over a one to four Jupiter's wafer-thin ring brings to sixteen the number of
hour period, when it occurs. Several solutions which will confirmed Jovian satellites.
eliminate any concern from this problem are under The new satellite, 1979J3, orbits about 56,200 kilo-
consideration. meters above the cloudtops with a period of 7 hours 4,5
minutes and a velocity of 31.5 km/s. Its diameter is about
Yoyager 2 40 kilometers.
Discovered by JPL oprical navigation engineer Steve
Voyager 2 continues in interplanetary cruise. Its Synnott, 1979J3 was assumed to be 7979J1 when found
operations during its sister craft's Sarurn activiries will be during a search to confirm the orbit of that satellite last
limited to routine calibrationsand navigation. March. L979Il, discovered last fall in photos taken by
Voyager 2 in July 1979, has similar characteristicswith a
DSN Completes Station Updates diameter of 30 to 40 kilometers, a period of 7 hours 8 to
10 minutes, and an orbit at the outer edge of the ring some
All three Deep Space Network srations now boasr one
each 26-, 34-, and 64-meter antennas. One 26-meter 57,800 kilometers above the cloudtops.
This spring, when checkingVoyager 1 pictures from
antenna at each station has been enlarged to 34 meters. The
March 1979 to verify 1,979J1,,Synnott discovered 1979J2,
enlargement greatly expands the tracking capabilities of the
dnother small satellite 7O to 80 kilometers in diamerer
network, as the distances to the spacecraft increase and the
orbiting between Amalthea and Io. At that time he also
number of spacecraft being tracked also grows. By electri-
sighted an object thought to be I979J1. However, furrher
cally combining the signals received by a 34- and a 64-meter
crosschecking between Voyager L and 2 photos showed
antenna (a technique known as arraying), a 28 percent
that tl.ris object would have been on the opposite side of
increase in received signal strength is realized over thar
achievable with a 64-meter station alone. Even with this Jupiter from l979lt's position when Voyager 2 photo-
graphed it. This led to the discovery of 1979J3.
improvement, the highest data rate achievable from
Many scientists feel that such small satellites may
Yoyager at Saturn will be 44.8 kilobits per second, in con-
influence the composition and srability of planetary rings.
rast to the 115.2 kilobits per second receivedfrom Jupiter.
Without aruaying,the maximum rate would be 29.9 kilobits
fi.br second. The extreme disrance involved lowers the data Awards
rate availability. The Deep Space Network tracking stations
are located at Canberra, Australia; Madrid, Spain; and Gold- The Council of the Federation Aeronautique Inter-
stone, California. nationale (FAI) has unanimously awarded the FAI
Honorary Group Diploma for Astronaurics for 1979 to the
PRA Determines Saturn Rotation Rate Voyager Project Team. The diploma is awarded annually to
groups of people who have contributed greatly to the
The planetary radio astronomy (PRA) experiment on- progress of aviation during the previous year or years. The
board the Voyager spacecraft has determined Sarurn's rota- presentation will be made at the federation's general con-
tion rate to be lO hours 39.4 minutes (t 0.15 minutes) for ference in Auckland, New Zealand November 8-12, 1980.
the bulk of Saturn. Eanh observations had shown similar Raymond L. Heacock, Voyager project manager ar
periods for temperate and polar regions of Saturn, but a JPL, has accepted the James Watt International Medal
much shorter (10 hours 14 minutes) period near the awarded by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in
equator, indicating the presence of a high-velocity England. The presentation was made June 25, 1980 at the
equatorial jet stream. institute's London headquarters.
M ' S S / O NS I A T U S R E P O R TN O . 5 3 S E P T E M B E R
19.1980
lN THE MOVIES - Nearly nine weeks before its closest approach to Saturn, Voyager 1 photographed four continuous
rotations of the planet. This picture. taken September 12from a range of 81 million kilometers (5O.5 million miles) is part
of that sequence. Very obvious are numerous bands in Saturn's atmosphere, the Cassini and Encke Divisions in the rings,
the rings' shadow on the planet, and the planet's shadow on the rings (rightl. The Cassini Division is the more prominent
gap in ring brightness, while the Encke Division is the fainter gap near the ring tip. Where the rings cross the face of the
planet, the planet can be seen through the Cassini^Division and the C-ring, the less dense ring between the cloudtops and
B-ring. At the current sun illumination angle of 3-, the rings appear much darker than the planet itself , quite unlike most
earth-basedphotographs.
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Admrnistration
R e c o r d e d M i s s i o n Status(213) 354-7237
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
C a l r f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo l T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u s B u l l e t i n E d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a P u b l i c l n l o r m a t i o n O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
TETHYS
BENEATH THE RING PLANE - On November 11, Voyager 1 will pass about 4330 kilometers (2500 milesl from Titan's
clouds, and then will dip below the ring plane. About twenty-two hours later, on its outbound leg, Voyager I will rise .
above the ring plane once again, passing through an area where Dione is thought to clear a path through the E-ring
particl€s,
Voyager 1
September 17,1980
Range to Saturn: 76 million kilometers
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Administration
Recorded Mission Status (213) 354-7237
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
C a L i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y Status BulletinEditor (213) 354-4438
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a P u b l i c I n f o r m a t i o nO f f i c e ( 2 1 3 ) 3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
UPDATE and helium to the cloudtops, with heavier helium sinking
through to the interior hydrogen.
Voyager 1 will perform a planned trajectory
Several other gases are known to exist at Saturn,
correction maneuveron October 10. The thrusterswill fire
including heavy hydrogen (deuterium), methane, ethane,
briefly to accelerate the spacecraft about 2 meters per
second and to change its course slightly. Without this and phosphine. Helium has not been confirmed, but its
approximately 13.7-minuteburn, the spacecraftwould be existence is inferred from other factors.
on a collision course with Titan, Satum's largestsatellite. Saturn is indeed an oblate spheroid, with flattened
Voyager 1 is scheduledto swoop about 2500 miles above poles and a bulging equator. About 5800 kilometers (3600
Titan's clouds on November11. A final coursecorrectionis miles) difference has been measured between the polar and
scheduledfor November 7 if neededto "fine tune" the equatorial radii. The generally accepted equatorial radius is
flight path. 60,300 kilometers (37 ,5OOmiles).
Only two more weeks remain in Voyager 1's Both Jupiter and Saturn radiate about twice the
"Observatory" phaseconsistingof routine, cyclical observa-
amount of energy they receive from sunlight, despite their
tions of the Saturn system.Pictureresolutionis now about
great distances frorn the sun. Saturn should have cooled
1640 kilometers, comparedto about 5OOOkilometersfor
long ago, as it receives 100 times less sunlight than earth.
the best Saturn photograph ever obtained from earth. On
October 24, the cameraswill begin four-picture (2 X 2) Heat must therefore be generated in some other way - per-
mosaicsof the planet and rings. haps by interaction between the hydrogen and helium.
As the spacecraftnears the Satum system, a search Even with its own heat source, Saturn is still colder
for new satellites will continue. Two small satellites are than Jupiter, and material freezes at greater cloud depths.
thought to orbit at the samedistanceasDione, one trailing Ammonia, for example, freezes and forms clouds at a depth
severaldegreesbehind and the other leading severaldegrees of two to three atmospheres on Saturn, compared to one
ahead. Sets of two (i.e., 1 X 2 mosaics)long-exposures atmosphere at Jupiter (an atmosphere is a unit of pressure
through the clear filter will be used to try to capture images corresponding to about 14,7 pounds per square inch at sea
of these satellitesand the rings. The pictures will be used level on earth).
primarily to calculate the orbits more precisely and to
A considerable quantity of atmospheric dust is
provide coverageof the rings which are beginningto over-
believed to exist, also. A high altitude haze, probably of
flow the narrow-anglecamera'sfield of view as Voyager 1
nearsthe planet, ammonia, obscures the clouds. A belt/zone system exists
similar to Jupiter's.
SATURN Visual measurements of Saturn's rotation rate give a
figure of 10 hours 14 minutes for near-equatorial regions,
"There is not perhaps another object in the heavens while measurements of the pattern of Saturn's radio signals
that presents us with such a variety of extraordinary give a rate of 10 hours 39 minutes 24 seconds, more nearly
phenomena as the planet Saturn: a magnificent akin to visual measurements at high latitudes..Precise mea-
globe . . ."
-Sir William Herschel surement of the rate at different latitudes is important for
in Singular Figure of Saturn (1805) targeting Voyager's various instruments and correlating
their data. The difference in wind velocities between
Herschel was among the many through the ages who Saturn's equatorial and temperate zones indicates equa-
have been fascinated by the sixth planet, its nest of rings, torial wind velocities of 1400 kilometers (900 miles) per
and its covey of satellites. Over 2600 years of observations hour - nearly twice the speed of Jupiter's winds. These
have yielded volumes of knowledge on the Saturn system, wind speeds may account for the lack of long-lived atmo-
but this steady flow of learning is about to accelerate spheric features.
tremendously as Voyager t homes in. Saturn's rotation axis is inclined about 26.75 degrees
One of the solar system's four outer planets known as from earth's orbital plane, accounting for the seeming tilt
the "gas giants" (along with Jupiter, Uranus, and Neptune), of the rings which rotate about Saturn's equatorial region.
Saturn is unique in its extremely cold atmosphere with The planet's orbit is not suictly elliptical, but is affected by
high-speed winds; its nested set of rings; and its mismatched other planets, especially Jupiter. Wandering between 9 and
set of moons 10 AU from the sun (an AU is earth's distance from the
These outer planets are huge accumulations of helium sun), Saturn makes a full trip in about 29.5 years.
and hydrogen with small rocky cores. Saturn's overall While each of Voyager's instruments operates
density is about seven-tenths that of water - which means independently, gathering specific data, analysis of Saturn is
that the planet could float if there were a cosmic ocean. An interdependent. The combined data will comprise our most
enormous balloon of hydrogen and helium, Saturn could comprehensive picture of the Saturn system.
hold about 77A earchs- but is only 95 times heavier than At the planet, infrared spectroscopy will give
earth. information on atmospheric gas composition and abun-
Current models of Saturn's interior suppose a small, dance, clouds, hazes, temperatures, circulation, and heat
heavy, rocky core which may be twice earth's size but 15 to balance. Ultraviolet spectroscopy will study how sunlight is
20 times heavier due to large concentrations of rock and absorbed and scattered in the atmosphere, to learn more
iron. Pioneer 11 measured the core radius at 13,800 kilo- about the atmospheric composition and structure. Photo-
meters (8,575 miles). Enveloping the core is a form of elec- graphs will afford a study of global wind systems and the
trically conductive liquid metallic hydrogen not found on atmospheric strucnrre. Radio signals passing through the
earth because of the gTeat temperatures and pressure atmosphere will tell about the vertical structure of the
required to produce it. Beyond this is a shell of hydrogen atmosphere, ionosphere, clouds, and turbulence.
M/SS/OA/SIATUS REPORTNO. 55 ocToBER23, 1980
s-1 2h
s-48h
s+6h s+9h
RING ASPECTS - These comput€r-genorated plots show how Voyager I's vierr of the ringc will change as it flies past Saturn in
Novembor. The planot size is constant in thel€ vierm to allow a comparison of Voyager'e wide- and natrow-angle cameras'
fields-of-vierr at various tlms3 (the locations of th6 fields-of-view shown here are not necersarily where the camera will bo pointing
at these timc but are shown only for size comparison; the longitudes given are also for reference onlyl. Two days before clos*t approach
(S-48 hoursl, Voyager I will still be above the ring plane on its inbound journey. Shortly after closest approach to Titan, at about S-18 hours,
the spacecraft will drop bclow the ring plane. Near'ctosest approaoh, Voyager I will be above Saturn's shadowed southern hemisphere. Radio
measuroments of the rings will tak€ place as the spacecraft passes behind the planet as seen from eafth and all other science data will be tapo
recorded for about 4-112hourc while spacecraft tel€motry is turned off. At S+4-1l2 hours, Voyager 1 will soar above the ring plane, crossing an
area where the satellite Dione is thought to clear a path through the E-ring pafticl$. Voyager I will continue its Saturn system obseruations
through December 15, looking back at the receding planet.
to orbit at the same distance from Saturn as the intcr- together likc a jigsaw puzzle- to show an entire region.
mediate-sizedsatellite Dione. Satellite maps will be produced. Atmospheric featurcs at
The ultraviolet splctrometer has bcen scanning the Saturn and Titan will be tracked to lcern about wind
Saturn syst€m from side to side of Titan's orbit, but now speeds,convection, currents, and other mechanicsof their
will concentrate on scensof smallcr areas,gaining composi- weather systems. The photographs will be compared with
tion data on Saturn, Titan, the rings, and the five inner the infrared and ultraviolet dars to produce tempcratur€
satellites. Celestial mechanics data will be extracted from maps and compositiond information.
the spacecraft's radio signals, while radio astronomy and
plasma wave studies will continue. Several instrument NASA Associate Adminietrator Diec
calibrations will take place.
The second far encounter phase will begin November Dr. Thomas A. (Tim) Mutch, NASA Associate
2, ten days before closcst approach. Voyager 1 will be 14 Administrator for Space Science, was killed October 6
million kilometers (8.8 million miles) from Saturn. while leading e seven-manAmcrican team on a mountain-
At Saturn, Voyager will study the planct, the rings, climbing expedition in the Himalayas.
the satellites, and the magnetosphere.Elevenscienccinstnr- He is repofted to have suffered a fatal fall on the
ments fall into four broad categories: optical remote sen- descent from the summit of 23,410-foot Mount Nun in
sors, fields and particles remote sensors,fields and particles Kashmir, India, about 350 miles nonh of New Delhi.
instruments, and the radio. The optical remote sensing Dr. Mutch became NASA's Associate Administrator
instruments are grouped together on the scan platform for Space Science in t979, anil was responsible for the
perched at the edge of an 8-foot boom. These instru- planning and direction of the agency'soverall spacescience
ments - the wide- and narrow-angle cameras,the infrared program. His enthusiasm for the space program ran high,
interferometer/radiometer, the ultraviolet spectromcter, "I feel very strongly about the space progtam. I feel it is
and the photopolarimetet - are aligned to look at about vital for the nation, notjust a few scientists.It's an explora-
the same place so that their data may be compared. For tion that's very much a part of our national spirit," he told
example, the infrared instrument can provide information an inteniewer.
on the t€mperature of an area seen in a photograph, as it Prior to joining NASA, he was a professorof geology
did with lo's volcanoes. at Brown University, Providence,Rhode Island, During this
Two remote sensorsmeasurethe effects of fields and time, he was a member of the Lunar ScienceReview Board
particles, studying planetary radio emissions and plasma (1969-1973r, leader of the Viking Lander Imaging Science
waves. Fields and particles instruments measure magnetic Team (1969-t977), and chairmanof severalNASA commit-
fields, plasma, low-energy charged particles, and cosmic tees planning the post-Viking exploration of Mars. At
rays. These instruments also provide complementary data. NASA, he was involved with the Voyager and Pioneer
Thirdly, the spacecraft's radio signals provide essen- missions.
tial information about atmosphericstructure, planetary and NASA Administrator Dr. Robert A. Frosch said,
satellite masses,ring particle size and density, and general "Tim Mutch was a valued friend and colleague. His con-
relativiry. tributions to the space science programs of the United
By the end of its Saturn observations in December States are many and earned for him an extraordinary repu-
1980, Voyager 1 will have taken about 17,5O0pictures of tation among his peers. . . His work has made significant
the Saturn system. The best resolution at the planet will be contributions to the knowledge of our solar system"
about 4 kilometers, and of some of the satellites, 2 kilo- A scholarshipfund has been establishedat the Depart-
meters. Many of the pictures will be mosaicked- fitted ment of Geology, Brown University.
:il:ti
A B I G W H E E L ? - V o y a g e r 1 a c q u i r e d t h e s e f o u r p h o t o g r a p h so f S a t u r n ' s r i n g s d u r i n g a p e r i o d o f 1 2
hours on October 4 and 5, 1980. The photo at lower left is enlarged on the front page. The images
have been computer-enhanced to emphasize detail in portions of the A- and B-rings, separated by the
d a r k C a s s i n iD i v i s i o n . V i s i b l e w i t h i n t h e B - r i n g a r e p a t t e r n s o f d a r k , n e a r l y r a d i a l f e a t u r e sw h i c h h a v e
recently been discovered in the Voyager images. As illustrated by these examples, the shape and
number o{ these features is quite variable. A time-lapse sequence of photographs shows that a few
features retain their appearance for a period of several hours. Pre-Voyager photography has failed to
show such radial structure, and most current theories predict that the rings will be uniform about their
circumference, quite unlike the appearance shown here. These features probably represent regions
where there are fewer particles, so that less sunlight is reflected. The origin of these variations in the
density of particles is not yet understood; but they may be caused by the gravitational influence of
nearby Saturn satellites.
(Small, square smudged areas are reseau marks engraved on the camera, and not features of Saturn or
its rings.l
M/SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO. 56 oCTOBER 31, 1980
Two small satellites orbiting near the F-ring have been On November 2, Yoyager 1 begins the second half of
discovered in images taken October 25. Satellite 14 orbits its far encounter phase. This ten-day period includes a final
about 800 kilometers (500 miles) inside the F-ring (but adjustment to the flight path, a final operational readiness
outside the A-ring), at about 79,5OO kilometers (49,000 test for critical radio science during near encounter, and the
miles) above Saturn's cloudtops. Satellite 13 orbits about highest resolution three-color 3x5 mosaic of Saturn and its
25OO kilometers (1500 miles) outside the F-ring, at about rings. The far encounter phases will end November 11 as
82,000 kilometers (51,000 miles) above the clouds. Based the near encounter computer sequencesbegin.
on their apparent brightnesses,the objects are about 25O to Voyager 1 is moving away from the sun with a
300 kilometers (1OOto 185 miles) in diameter. velocity of 2O.2 kilometers per second (45,000 miles an
R I N G S W I T H I N R I N G S W l T H l N . . . - T h i s t w o - i m a g em o s a i c
of Saturn's rings shows approximately 95 individual concentric
features in the rings. The extraordinarily complex structure of
the rings is easily seen across the entire span of the ring system.
The ring structure, once thought to be produced by the gravita-
tional interaction between Saturn's satellites and the orbit of
ring particles, has now been found to be too complex for this
explanation alone. The 14th satellite of Saturn, discovered by
Voyager is seen (upper leftl just outside the narrow F-ring,
which is less than 150 kilometers (93.2 milesl wide. Voyager 1
took these photos on November 6, 1980 at a range of 8 million
kilometers (4.9 million miles).
i.;:
''':ll'
'.d$r...l
:*
S A T U R N ' S C L O U D S - S a t u r n ' sn o r t h e r n
hemisphere as seen by Voyager 1 on
N o v e m b e r5 , 1 9 8 0 a t a r a n g e o f 9 m i l l i o n
k ilometers (5.5 million miles) shows a
variety of features in the planet's clouds:
S m a l l - s c a l ec o n v e c t i v e c l o u d f e a t u r e s a r e
v i s i b l e i n t h e d a r k b e l t ( c e n t e r ) ;a n i s o l a t e d
c o n v e c t i v ec l o u d w i t h a d a r k r i n g l s s e e n i n
t h e l i g h t e r z o n e ; a n d a l o n g i t u d i n a lw a v e i s
visible in the brighter zone (right of center
b e l t ) . T h e s m a l l e s t J e a t u r e sv i s i b l e i n t h i s
photograph are 175 kilometers (108.7
miles)across.
TWO VIEWSOF VOYAGERI FLYBYOF SATURN
N O V E M B E R1 1 . 1 3 1
. 980
+12 VIEW
EQUATORIAL
HRS ENCELADUS
MIMAS
DIONE l
r-.-
\ 1 \SATURTTTETHYS .12 TITAN
d-t-----\[ - - - t i \ ! f)d RINGS 2 HRS HRS
HYPERION RHEA \-/, f-'i,
O HRS
CLOSEST APPROACH TO SATURN
3:45 PM PST
NOV 12, 1980
DIONEr"'
/i"'yoi
+12 RHEA
HRS
-4 ls
--' y't, SATURN
ENCELADUS/ \ RINGS -12
(\ HRS
+24 2 HRSY
HRS
TITAN
-24
HRS
N O T E :S A T E L L I T E SA R E N O T T O S I Z E A N D
A R E S H O W N A T P O I N T SO F C L O S E S T
A P P R O A C HB Y V O Y A G E RI
POLARVIEW 0 100 200 300 400
(-l."l-r'l.J".@
T H O U S A N D SO F K I L O M E T E R S
0 100 200 300 400
I HYPERION
T H O U S A N D SO F M I L E S
EHiEi
;
€E€ig;
Ei:f;:H
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M/SS/ON SIATUS REPORTNO. 58 NOVEMBER16. 1980
Voyager L 1l/loleo 3,OOO,OOO
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A CO-ORBITAL - A ring shadow crossesthe south polar region of narrow ring of Saturn a few thousand kilometers away from the
Saturn's eleventh moon, a trailing co-orbital satellite. Comparison of satellite. The pock-markedmoon is approximately 135 by 70 kilo-
the two images, taken 13 minutes apart, reveals a narrow shadow meters (80 by 40 miles).
moving across its face. The shadow is probably cast by a small,
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ENCELADUS Dni.tE HYPERTON
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this face of Tethys looks toward Saturn and
shows a large valley about 750 kilometers
N long and 6O kilometers wide (5O0 by 40
miles). The craters are probably the result of
impacts and the valley appears to be a large
fracture of unknown origin. Tethys is
o slightly less than one-third the size of
o Earth's Moon. The smallest feature visible
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TITAN HAZE - A thick atmospherichaze
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above the cloud level shrouds Titan,
Saturn's largest satellite. A dark polar hood,
and a darker northern hemisphere are seen
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in this inbound view. The divisions in the
o haze occur at altitudes ol 2OO,375 and 500
o kilometers n24. 233 and 31O miles) above
the limb of the moon.
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R H E A - C r a t e r s s t a n d s h o u l d e r - t o - s h o u l d e ro n t h e s u r f a c e o f S a t u r n ' s s a t e l l i t e R h e a , s e e n i n t h i s m o s a i c o f t h e
h i g h e s t - r e s o l u t i o np i c t u r e s o f t h e n o r t h p o l a r r e g i o n o f t h e m o o n . R h e a i s 2 , 4 0 0 k i l o m e t e r s ( 1 , 4 9 0 m i l e s ) i n d i a m e t e r
a n d i s t h e m o s t h e a v i l y c r a t e r e d o f t h e m o o n s o f S a t u r n . T h e l a r g e s tc r a t e r , m a d e b y t h e i m p a c t o f c o s m i c d e b r i s , i s
a b o u t 3 0 0 k i l o m e t e r s { 1 8 5 m i l e s ) i n d i a m e t e r . M a n y c r a t e r sh a v e c e n t r a l p e a k sf o r m e d b y t h e r e b o u n d o f t h e f l o o r a f t e r
t h e e x p l o s i v ef o r m a t i o n o f t h e c r a t e r . M u l t i p l e r i d g e s a n d g r o o v e sv i s i b l e n e a r t h e s h a d o w e d g e r e s e m b l et h o s e s e e no n
Earth'sMoon and lt4ercury.
4
M/SS/ONSIATUS REPORTNO. 59 NOVEM BER21,1980
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PABTING SHOT - Looking strangely
serene, the crescent of Saturn. the planet's
rings and their shadows are seen in this
(' image as Voyager 1 began to leave th€
Saturn system. The bright limb of Saturn is
clearly visible through the A, B, and C rings,
while the dark band cutting through the
o crescent is the shadow of the rings, The cres-
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G cent appears artificially brighter since this
image was overexposed to bring out detail in
the rings.
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FAR FROM EMPTY - Once believed devoid of material, the
Cassini Division may be filled with over 2O ringlets of its own. o
Discovered by Cassini in 1675, the Division is a 3soo-kilometer
(22oo-milel stretch between the classical A- and B-rings (the region
between the two dark ringletsl. A number of individual features BRAIDED F-RING - Two narrow, braided, bright rings that trace
(from its outer boundary to the inner boundary) are visible here: a distinct orbits, as well as a broader, very diffuse component about
medium dark ringlet, 800 kilometers (50O milesl wide; four brighter 35 kilometers (20 milesl in width can be seen in the F-ring. Also
ringlets, approximately 50O kilometers {3OO miles} wide and sepa- soen are "knots," which probably are local clumps of ring material,
rated by dark divisions; and a new. barely visible, narrow (about 1OO but may be mini-moons. The photo was taken from the unillumi-
k i l o m e t e r so r 5 O m i l e s ) ,b r i g h t r i n g l e t a t t h e i n n e r b o u n d a r y . nated face of the rings.
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RHEA - One of the highest-resolution color images of Rhea shows of Rhea's surface are deficient in the very large {100 kilometers or
one of the satellite's most heavily cratered areas, indicating an 62 miles or largerl craters, indicating a change in the nature of the
ancient surface dating back to the poriod immediately following the impacting bodies and an early period of surface activity. White areas
formation of the planets 4.5 billion years ago. The photograph on the edges of several of the craters are probably fresh ice exposed
shows surface features about 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles) in diameter, on steep slopes or possibly deposited by volatiles leaking from
similar to a view of Earth's Moon through a telescope. Other areas fractured regions.
CO-ORBITAL
SATELLITES10 AND 11
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MUTED FEATURES - Low-level contrast between features in IAPETUS - A large circular feature about 2OO kilometers (12O
Saturn's cloud deck is shown in this composite photograph. The miles) across with a dark spot in its center is visible in this photo-
brown spot in the northern hemisphere {center, left) and the bright graph of Saturn's satellite lapetus. The satellite's leading hemisphere
oval below it have been observed by Voyager for several weeks. i s t o t h e l e f t , a n d t h e t r a i l i n g h e m i s p h e r e .w h i c h i s a b o u t f o u r t o f i v e
Wind speeds in this latitudinal area are as high as 60 meters per times brighter, is to the right. The large circular feature is most
second (90 miles per hour), so distances between these features probably a large impact structure outlined by dark material, possibly
increase rapidly. A deep atmospheric haze mutes ail features. The thrown out by the impact.
banded belt/zone structure extends to higher latitudes than at
J u p i t e r . T a k e n n e a r r i n g p l a n e c r o s s i n g ,t h e e d g e - o nv i e w o f t h e r i n g s
seems to blend into the ring shadows cast on the planet's face.
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SOUTH POLE - Numerous small cloud featuresare shown in this eddies. After crossing Saturn's ring plane during its Titan flyby.
w i d e - a n g l ei m a g e o f S a t u r n ' s s o u t h p o l a r r e g i o n a n d m i d - s o u t h e r n Voyager 1 proceeded south toward a closest Saturn approach over
l a t i t u d e s . A t t h e s e p o l a r l a t i t u d € s t h e l a r g e - s c a l el i g h t a n d d a r k t h e s o u t h e r n h e m i s p h e r e ,5 - 1 / 2 h o u r s a f t e r t a k i n g t h i s p h o t o g r a p h .
b a n d s b r e a k d o w n i n t o s m a l l - s c a l ef e a t u r e s ,s e e n h e r e a s w a v e s a n d T h e c l o s e s ta p p r o a c h p o i n t w a s o n t h e u n l i t s i d e .
lletin
M/SSTONsrArus REPORTNO. 60 DECEMBER 5, 1980
Post-EncounterActivities Magnetosphere
Voyager 1's post-Saturnencounter observationswill Of the six planetsin the solarsystemwhich havebeen
continue through December15, 1980. Aside from calibra- studied so far at closerange,five - Mercury, Earth, Mars,
tions, no further imaging observationsare planned after Jupiter, and Saturn- have intrinsic magneticfields. These
December 19, but the fields and particles sensinginstru- fields are generatedby currents which flow in the interiors
ments will continue to be operatedand to samplethe inter- of the planets, and are mainly dipolar; i.e., current along
planetarymedium. the magneticfield linesflows from pole to pole.
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u l i c sa n d
Space Administration
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
C a l i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i l o r n i a P u b l i cl n f o r m a t i o nO f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
The magnetic field influences not only the planet, but
a considerable area,of space around the planet, as well. This
area is called the magnetosphere. Satum's magnetosphere
extends outward from the planet nearly one million
miles - making it about five times larger than Earth's mag-
netosphere but only one-third as large as Jupiter's. The
rings, Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, and Rhea are
totally within the magnetosphere at all times, as are the
small, newly-discovered satellites.
Although Saturn's largest satellite, Titan, is usually
inside the magnetosphere, it is sometimes outside in the
solar wind, due to fluctuations of the magnetospheric
boundary. The size of the magnetosphere is influenced by
increases or decreases in the intensity of the flow of
charged particles streaming from the sun (the solar wind).
Solar flares, for example, increase the solar wind intensity; x : TITAN
C L O S E SA
TP P B O A C H
but the effect may take several weeks to reach the outer
planets.
At the time of Voyager 1's passage,Titan was inside
Saturn's magnetosphere. The data are being studied to
T I T A NF L Y B Y
determine how the magnetosphere interacts with Titan and
its thick nitrogen-rich atmosphere.
As is the case at Jupiter, charged parricles in Sarurn's
magnetosphere are dragged along by the magnetic field and
rotate with the planet ar rhe planet's rotation rate - about EbiAf, fi in6'i,,i.fi :,r:rf
1O hours 4O minutes. At Titan, about 1.2 million kilo- Ejixt.,r,liiJt
rr-:i WAK
meters from the planet's center, these particles speed past
at almost 200 kilomerers per second (+47,OOOmiles per X: CLOSEST APPROACH
A T 1 1 : 0 6( P S TE R T I
hour)! For comparison, particles in Jupiter's magnetic field
are travelling ^bout 77 kilometers per second (I72,OOO soo : EARTH
miles per hour) at Io's orbital distance. OCCULTATION
PERIOD
The flow of the co-rotating magnetosphere around
Titan leaves a "wake" much like that left by a motorboat. ;ii-'J''
\i:."::\
Inside this wake region, the ions and electrons are colder,
\:i'iri.\
slower, and of higher density than the surrounding mag-
netospheric particles. Currents in this wake form a magneric
tail which extends in front of Titan as its orbits. The mag- spent only a few days in Saturn's magnetotail, compared to
netosphere rotates faster than Titan does. several weeks in Jupiter's. The first outbound magneto-
The source of particles in Saturn's magnetosphere is pause crossing occurred November 14 about 2.580 million
still under investigation. The low-energy charged particles kilometers past the planet. By November 16 at 4.680 mil-
(LECP) instrument's detection of fast-moving (7000 miles lion kilometers, Voyager 1 passed out of Saturn's magnetic
per second) molecular hydrogen in Saturn's magnetosphere domain and back into the solar wind for good.
suggests that Titan's atmosphere may be an important Satellites such as Titan and Jupiter's Io have been
source. The LECP also found that the energies of fast ions called naturally-occurring power stations. As Titan moves
in Saturn's magnetosphere are typically ten times less than through Saturn's co-rotating magnetic field, its ionosphere
those in Jupiter's. acts as an armature to Produce voltage and power. Voyager
1 measured these to be about 6000 volts and 2O megawatts,
Voyager 1 met Saturn's bowshock wave on November respectively. The magnetic field at th€ inner regions of
11., about 1.572 million kilometers from the planet's cen- Titan's wake is weaker than outside the wake. Titan prob-
ter. The bowshock is the outer boundary of a planet's mag- ably has no intrinsic magnetic field, indicating that it does
netic influence where particles streaming from the sun at not possessa liquid, conducting core. lf Titan does possess
supersonic speeds drop to subsonic speeds as they meet a magnetic field, it can be no stronger than one-tenth of
particles more influenced by a planet's magnetic field. The one percent of Earth's magnetic field, or about 30 nano-
actual boundary of the co-rotating magnetosphere is called Teslas, as measured by Voyager's magnetometers.
the magnetopause, and the area between the bowshock and Surrounding Titan and its orbit and extending nearly
magnetopause is the magnetosheath. After crossing the a million kilometers inward toward the planet to the orbit
bowshock, Voyager 1 travelled through the magnetosheath of Rhea, the ultraviolet spectrometer detected an enor-
and crossed the magnetopause five times in about an hour mous, flattened cloud of uncharged hydrogen atoms form-
as this boundary also ebbed and flowed. The first mag- ing a doughnutlike torus around the planet. These atoms
netopause crossing was a little more than two hours after do not rotate with the magnetosphere. The mass of the
th_e bowshock crossing. The final inbound crossing of the torus is estimated to be 25,000 tons and the density about
magnetopause was about 1.374 million kilometers from 10 atoms per cubic centimeter.
Saturn's center. At the planet, the rings appear to be an effective
As the solar wind streams around the planet and its shield or absorber of charged particles, but in the process
magnetosphere, the magnetosphere stretches out into a are affected themselves. The magnetic effects on the rings
tail - a magnetotail behind the planet streaming away are evidenced by the B-ring spokes and lightning-like electri-
from the sun. Because of its curved flight path, Voyager 1 cal dischargesin the rings.
M/SS/ONSTATUS REPORT NO. 61 JANUARY14 , 1981
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Administration
Jet Propulsion Laboratory RecordedMissionStatus(2'13) 354-7237
C a l i l o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo l T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 4 4 3 8
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i f o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
ten years. Saturn's bands seem to be about twice as wide as Analysis of the spacecraft's radio signals as they
Jupiter's, and extend into the polar regions. While Jovian passed through ring material on the way to earth (a ring
winds appear to be closely linked to the belt-zone srrucrure, occultation experiment) shows that the particles, mostly ice
this does not appear to be true at Saturn. Oval spots have or frosted rock, may range in size anywhere from dust to
been identified in Saturn's atmosphere and will be tracked boulders. The C-ring has chunks that average about two
by Voyager 2 to learrrmore about the planet's atmospheric meters across, while the E-ring has mostly very fine
circulation patterns. particles. There certainly is a lot of bumping and grinding
Auroras seen near Saturn's poles are comparable in going on between ring particles as they orbit. The optical
intensity to earth's polar auroras (the "northern and densities of the rings, as indicated by the amount of light
southern lights"). Saturn's auroras are probably caused by they allow to pass through, also vary, with the optical
molecular hydrogen high in the atmosphere. The ultraviolet thickness of the B-ring being the greatest.
spectrometer also detected auroral-type emissions near the Voyager 1 also provided clues to the puzzle of the
illuminated limbs of the planet, and Voyager 2 will con- rings' stability - why have they existed for so long? Why
tinue to study these phenomena. do the particles continue to orbit the planet rather than
Radio signals rypical of lightning dischargeshave been drifting off into space?A theory that large chunks, or small
detected, but lightning has not been photographed on satellites, rotating within the rings may control their orbits
Saturn since the rings reflect so much light onto the dark gained stature when several small satellites were discovered
side of the planet that it is too bright to see the lightning. near the outer edge of the A-ring and on either side of the
The lightning-like discharges are believed to originate in the F-ring. Satellites 13 and 14 flank the F-ring, herding it
rings rather than in the atmosphere. much like sheepdogs moving an unruly flock down a
country lane. Satellite 15 is thought to control the outer
edge of the A-ring.
The rings probably do not possess a dense atmo-
60
VISIBLE sphere, but they almost certainly have electric fields, dielec-
MARKINGS tric particles, and collisions between particles - all part of
( )' (sAruRN)
m the essential conditions for earth-like lightning.
E'.*
Saturn's magnetic field appears to interact with the
*--..__ B-ring particles to cause the spoke{ike phenomena seen in
w many pictures. Electrostatic charging may temporarily levi-
@
tate very firre particles above the ring surface. These fine
LATITUDE
0 particles scarter light differently than the larger particles in
(dee)
the denser body of the ring, and thus appear dark from
)
w some viewing angles and bright from others.
al' r{{pi
. . . S A T U R N( V O Y A G E R )
-40 The Satellites
o SATURN(EARTH)
- JUPITER(VOYAGER)
w
As Titan loomed larger and larger on November 10
,100 0 100 200 300 400 500 and 11, it still looked like a,fuzzy yellow tennis ball, and
VELOCITY(m,/s)
EASTWARD spectators thought at last they were going to find some
boring satellites. Not so. Saturn's satellites present a new
Wind speed.sat Satum rdnge up to 1600 kilometers per bour, four to
class of icy, intermediate-sized objects unlike any planetary
fizse times faster tban any uinds at Jupiter. Tbi.splot compares zanal
wind oelocities on the tuo olanets. moons thus far explored, and unlike the asteroids as well.
These satellites are generally divided into three discussion
areas: the new small moons, giant Titan, and the inter-
mediate-sized objects.
The Rings To date, Voyager L has confirmed six new satellites at
Saturn. This includes confirmation of one satellite spotted
The revelation of hundreds of rings encircling Saturn three times by Pioneer 11 in September 1979. All of these
blew the cork off any theories of a few, well-behaved classi- satellites were photographed, but only two, satellites 10
cally-observed rings. Even more shattering was the dis- and 11, from close enough to determine their shapes. Both
covery that some of these ringlets are elliptical. One is even of these are irregularly-shaped with their long axes pointed
braided. Said one scientist, "The rings are doing exactly toward Saturn, and are apparently composed of water ice.
what the laws of physics tell them to do - we are just not They share an orbit about 91,000 kilometers (57,000 miles)
understanding those laws! " above Saturn's cloud tops and thus are referred to as the
Labelling the ring structure is going to be a monu- "co-orbitals".
mental task. The nomenclature presently in use labels them Little is known about satellites 12 through 15 other
as (moving outward from the planet) D, C, B, A, F, and E, than their orbits. Satellite 12 occupies the orbit of Dione,
named in order of their discovery. Besides the obvious slowly oscillating about a point 60' ahead of Dione. Satel-
gaggle of rings in the A, B, and C rings, Yoyager 1 con- lites 13, 14, and 15 orbit just outside the F-ring, just inside
firmed the existence of the D-ring closest to the cloudtops, the F-ring, and just outside the A-ring, respectively.
and found two more rings which lie between the F and E Rivers of methane may cut through glaciers of
rings. The F-ring was also found to be comprised of three methane under a nitrogen sky on Titan. Voyager data con-
interwoven ringlets. Not even the empty spaces are really firm that the main constituent of Titan's atmosphere is
empty, it seems. At least twenty ringlets fill rhis 3500- nitrogen rather than methane as previously thought, and
kilometer wide space between the A and B-rings. The A- this means that Titan is the only other place besides earth
ring's Encke Division may truly be empty, however. known to have a nitrogen-based atmosphere.
Near the surface, Titan's atmospheric temperature type of tidal stresses suffered by Io in the tug-of-war
and pressure are near the triple point of methane, which between Jupiter and Europa. There is also speculadon that
means that it can probably exist as a solid, liquid, and a gas. Enceladus may be a source of E-ring particles since the
(The triple point for water, for example, is 32"F and 6 maximum intensity of the E-ring occurs near the orbit of
millibars pressure, at which point it can be liquid water, ice, Enceladus, about 24O,l9O kilometers from Saturn. Its
or water vapor.) Methane probably plays the same role on diameter is about 490 kilometers (300 miles).
Titan that water plays on earth as rain, snow, ice, and gas. A wide (60-kilometer or 4O-mile) valley stretches 750
The clouds may drop liquid methane rain on the surface. kilometers (470 miles) across the surface of Tethys (t€
Yoyager 1 measured Titan's surface temperature at this). The trench may be a crustal fracture caused by a blow
abottt 92 Kelvin (about -293"F). The minimum armo- which formed an 180-kilometer (11.o-mile)impact crater on
spheric temperature of about 7o Kelvin (- 3 33"F) is reached the other side of the satellite. Tethys may be pure ice.
at the 100 millibar pressure level, about 50 to 70 kilometers Slightly larger than the largest asteroids, it has a diameter of
above Titan's surface. The atmospheric pressure at the sur- about 1050 kilometers (650 miles) and orbits about
face is fifty percent greater than at earth, and the atmo- 296,560 kilometers from Saturn's center.
sphere is five times as deep as earth's. Several sinuous valleys, some of which appear to
branch, are visible on Dione's surface. Bright wispy streaks
The spacecraft's radio signals reached the surface of
stand out against an already highly-reflective surface, and
Titan - something the cameras could not do because of the
thick atmosphere. Titan appears to have a dark north polar are probably the result of relatively fresh ice ejecta thrown
hood and a three-tiered hazelayer above the atmosphere. out of m-ore recent (geologically-speaking) impact craters.
Dione (di o ne) is slightly more dense than the other five
Once thought to be the largest satellire in the solar
inner moons, breaking a pattern of progressively less dense
system, Titan has been dethroned. Its diameter has been
satellites moving out from the planet. Dione may be 30 to
measured to be about 5120 kilometers (3200 miles). The
70 percent rock. Its diameter is about 1110 kilometers (690
new king is Jupiter's Ganymede, 5276 kilometers (3278
miles) and its orbital distance is 379,O70 kilometers.
miles) in diameter. Both satellites are larqer than the planet
Mercury.
One of the mysteries remaining is why Titan is the
only satellite with a substantial atmosphere, while Gany-
mede, slightly larger, has at best a very tenuous atmosphere.
Titan exerts considerable gravitational forces on other
bodies, and may be a factor in tidal heating of Enceladus.
Titan's interaction with Saturn's magnetosphere is of keen
interest, for as the magnerosphere ebbs and flows with the
varying pressure of the solar wind, the magnetopause (rhe E
outer edge) sometimes sweeps across Titan, leaving Titan
temporarily completely outside the magnetic influence of
Saturn. When Titan is within rhe magnetopause, the mag-
netosphere also leaves a wake as it flows past the satellite.
E
The inner moons - Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione,
and Rhea - seem to be composed mainly of water ice.
Work is continuing to unravel the chemical composition of
N
these bodies, which may also contain ammonia compounds.
The thermal histories of small satellites - their heating or
voyager I lL/6/80
cooling - depends on their composition because of the dif-
ferent melting temperatures of various ices. Rhea's (ri a) surface is also highly reflective and
shows bright wispy breaks which may be fresh ice thrown
_ About 188,220 kilometers from Saturn*, Mimas
(mi-mus) is about 390 kilometers (24O miles) in diam- out of impact craters during a later bombardment period.
eter - about half the size of the largest asteroids. At some Its diameter is 1520 kilometers (940 miles), and its orbital
point in its history, Mimas was rocked by an impact which radius 527,830 kilometers.
left a gaping center nearly one-fourth the diameter of the Hyperion (hi pdr e an) is apparently non-icy and hrs a
satellite itself. Such a blow must have nearly shattered the gravitational relationship with Titan. Its diameter is about
satellite. The crater walls are about 9 kilometers (5.6 miles) 310 kilometers (190 miles) and its orbital radius is 1.5
high, with a central peak 4 to 5 kilometers (2.5-3 miles) million kilometers.
tall. Voyager 1 photographed parts of Mimas with a resolu- Iapetus (i ap i tas), about 145O kilometers (900 miles)
tion of 2 kilometers. in diameter, orbits about 3.56 million kilometers from
Saturn and has light and dark hemispheres. The leading face
Of the five inner moons, only Enceladus (en sel a dus) (that which faces forward as Iaperus orbits Saturn) reflects
shows no evidence of any impact craters (at a scale of 12 only about one-fifth as much light as the bright trailing
kilometers or 7 miles). Voyager 2 will get a much closer side. Its orbit is inclined significantly ro rhe plane in which
look at Enceladus in August. Since Enceladus is locked in a the rings and other inner satellites orbit.
2:1 orbital resonance with Dione (one orbit for every two Tiny Phoebe (fe be), in a retrograde (clockwise as
by Dione), there'is speculation that this causes the same seen from above) orbit highly inclined to the ring plane,
will have to wait to be photographed unril Voyager 2
arrives at Saturn next summer. Daily observations will begin
*Unless
otherwise stated. the orbital distances are from the in June, with closest approach ro Sarurn on August 25,
center of Saturn. 1981 at 8:24 pm PDT (spacecraftevent time).
+ 50.
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----r
/aourrn l]oruo,
JUPITER \
EAST
CAPRICORNUS
^----t
\b
\ OPHIUCHUS
a
SATURN
A C E T U S\ \
WEST
'a
t aorurtI -2s" 7'
<l>
S A G I T T A R I U St )
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ft
CANIS MAJOR
,
S O tJ T H
l. l'./-SCORPIUS
-50"
oh 18h 12h
Voyager 1, badng completed its tours of the Jupiter and Saturn systems, is heading out of tbe solar system touard the
constellation Ophiuchus. As tbe years pass, a stdrgazer might imagine seeing it at the abooe points. Ophiucbus is moaing
auay faster than Voyager 1 is approacbing.
Update Characteristics
SaturnSatellites Summary
Radius (km) Oensity Albedo
NASA Headquarters has officially approved the
Voyager Project's recommendation for Voyager 2's contin- Leading -80 -0.4
?
Co-Orbital
uation on to Uranus.
-^
Tre il inn
-40-45 -o.4
: :: ?
uo-urDttal
Enceladus 245! 15 1. 1 2! O . 5 2 1. 0 ! 0 . 1
On November 10, in ceremonies at the Caltech
campus, the Voyager Program Team received the American Tethys 5 2 5! l 0 1 . 0 31 0 . 0 6 0.8r 0.'l
Astronautical Society's Space Achievement Award "for Dione 5 5 5r 1 0 1. 4 3 1 0 . 0 9 0.6t 0.1
outstanding performance in tbe successful Voyager Program
Rhea 7 6 0j l 0 1. 3 3r 0 . 1 0 0 . 7t 0 . 1
and in recognition of tbeir major con*ibution to tbe
adoancernent of mankind's understanding of tbe Solar Titan 2 5 6 0! 3 0 1 . 9 41 0 . 0 2
System." Hyperion 1 5 5I 2 0 ? 0 . 3I 0 . 1
Voyager 2 captured. tbis image of Saturn on June 14, 1951, from a distance of 69 million kilometers (41 million mites).
Banding can clearly be seen in the nortbern hemisphere. Starting at the ring tips, tbe following features can be seen, outer
A-Ring; dark, narrou Encke Dioision; inner A-Ring; wider, dark CassiniDiaision; wide B-Ring; and tbe C-Ring. Tbe sbadou
of tbe planet cuts off the rings'image bebind the planet, ubile tbe rings'shadows fall across tbe equatorial zone, and blend
uitb tbe C-Ring in this uietts.
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Administration
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
R e c o r d e dM i s s i o nS t a t u s( 2 1 3 )354-7237
C a l i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y S t a t u sB u l l e t i nE d i t o r( 2 1 3 )354-4438
P a s a d e n a .C a l i f o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 01
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
JUPITE R
CLOSEST APPROACH
7 2 1 , 7 5k0m
t t9t19
JUPITER-SATURN
CRUISE
LAUNCH
H al2Ol17
R I N GP L A N EC R O S S I N G
N E A RE N C O U N T ETEST
R ( O U T B O U ND E S C E N D I N G }
5/5-6/81
8125181. 1O:45 PM
SATURN
NEPTUNE
CLOSEST APPROACH 8/89
1 6 1 . 0 @k m URANUS
1/86
8 / 2 5 1 8 1 ,9 : 5 1 P M
at25ta1
s -16HOURS
OBSERVATORY
N E A RE N C O U N T E R
TCMlO
9t29lA1
at27ta1
TCM8 S + 2 8H O U R S
NOTES:
7l19lA1
, I . T I M E SA R E E A R T H - R E C E I POTF S I G N A L ,
P A C I F I CD A Y L I G H TT I M E
2 . D A T E SA R E G R E G O R I A NCALENOAR
S R E F R O MC E N T E RO F B O D I E S
3 . D I S T A N C EA
4 . O N E W A Y L I G H TT I M E . 1 H F 2 6 M I N 3 5 S E C
AT SATUBNCLOSESTAPPBOACH
Update
Voyager 2is 6l daysfrom its closestapproachto Voyager Team GarnersAwards
Saturnon August 25. Travellingwith a velocity of 56,310
kilometers(3+,99Omiles)per hour relativeto the sun,it is
57.3 million kilometers(35.6 million miles)from the ringed The Voyager Team has receivedthe National Aero-
planet. Saturnobservationsofficially beganon June 5, and nautic Association'sprized Collier Trophy for 1980. The
will continuethrough September28. With the exceptionof team hasalsowon the GoddardMemorialTrophy of the
its failed main radio receiver,the failed capacitor in the National SpaceClub for the secondyear in a row. In a con-
backup radio receiver(both failures occurred in April gratulatoryletter on the occasionof the Collier Trophy,
1978), and severalsmallerproblemsthat are beingstudied, PresidentRonald Reaganremarked,"I welcomethis oppor-
the spacecraftis in good health, with all scienceinstru- tunity to salute the remarkableaccomplishmentsof the
ments operating. The plasmawave investigatorsreport that Voyager Mission Team . . . They have penetrated age-old
Voyager 2 has re-enteredJupiter's magnetic tail, nearly two mysteriesand givenus new knowledgeof ancientworlds
yearsand 300 million miles after it passedJupiter. Planets that can only challengeus to know more. No part of our
with magneticfields tend to havelong magnetotailsas the government'sprogramselectrifiesthe nation'sspirit more
solarwind flows around and past the planet, but Jupiter's than the spaceeffort."
magnetosphereis especiallylarge. The alignment of Jupi-
ter's magnetotail did not extend to Saturn when Voyager 1
flew by last November,and occursonce every 13 years,the At a VoyagerAwardsCeremonyJune 2, Dr. Hans
investigatorssay. They are anxious to learn the effect of Mark, nomineefor the post of NASA Deputy Administrator,
Jupiter'smagnetotailupon Saturn'sown magnetosphere. expressedthe hope that "some centuriesfrom now, when
peoplelook back at the year 1980 . . . they will remember
Voyager 1 continuesits investigationsof interplane- the remarkablepictures of the different worlds first visited
tary space,having completed its Saturn observationslast by the Voyagers. . ." and extended "hearty congratula-
December. tions" on the achievements of the VoyagerTeam.
ulletirr
M/SS/ONSrA rUS R NO. 63 AUGUST 14, 1981
In tbis Voyager 2 pbotograph of Saturn taken July 21, 1981, from a range of 33.9 million kilometeys (2l million miles),
two brigbt, ptesumably conaectiae cloud patterns are aisible in tbe midnortbem bemispbere. Sezseraldark spokeJike
features can also be seen in tbe broad B'Ring (left of planet). Tbe moons Rhea and Dione appear to the south and
soutb east of Saturn, respectioely.
WIDE-ANGLE
F I E L DO F V I E W
ENCOUNTER S+30m S + 1h
s+4h s+24h
Tbese computer-generated plots shou how Voyager 2's zsiew of tbe rings t:ill change as tbe spacecraft flies past Sdturn on
August 24-26. The planet size i.s constant in these oieTDsto allou a comparison of Voyager's uide- and nattou-dngle
cameras' fields-of<tieu at adrious times (the locations of the fields-ofoieu sboun here are not necessarily uhere the
cdmerds uill be pointing at these times but are sbousn only for size comparison; the longitudes ghten are also forreference
only). One day before closest approacb, Voyager 2 uill still be abooe tbe ring plane on its inbound flight. The rings will
continue to "open up" as the spacecraft dratss near. At tbe moment of closest approacb, only tbe uest limb of the planet
uill be lit; tbe rest of tbe planet will be in sbadow. Voyager 2 uill dip below the ring plane nearly one hour after closest
approacb. Tbe planet and rings uill be in sbadow. As it continues its outbound jourtteJ/, Vq/aget 2 uillremain belaw tbe
ring plane, looking back on the planet as the ings once again "open up". AII obseruations on the night side ofthe planet
will be tape recorded for later playback to Eartb, since tbe spacecraft uill be out of tadio communications witb Earth for
about 1-1/2 bours.
Fr<- /
p
?( R /
+-,{ A\
x/r /
-/-pr- \-D
Bl
Voyager 1 prouided these perspectioes of
Saturn's rings in Nouember 198O. Tbe
legend at top correlates to tbe ring features
in the tbree mosaics, all of uthicb are shown
at tbe same scale. Voyager 2 rtill obtain pic-
tures from angles similar to A and B, but
not C. Instead, Voyager 2 will obtain pic'
tures from below the ring plane, looking
back at tbe sun from the unlit side (point
D).
tion that Phoebe, which orbits in the opposite direction of small satellites appear to play an important role in ring
the other satellites, could be a captured asteroid. dynamics. Without these moonlets, the rings might have
long since dissipated into space, with nothing to keep them
Yoyager 1 images of the surfaces of Mimas, Dione,
locked in orbit around the planet. Voyager 2 will target
and Rhea showed them to be heavily cratered but also
its cameras to capture the already-known moonlets, and
showed evidence of crustal evolution - fractures and
will also look for other as yet undiscovered moonlets.
sparsely-crateredplains.
Many small moonlets have been discovered both from Several small satellites also share orbits with some of
earth-based and spacecraft observations. Some of these the larger satellites. 198056, about 160 kilometers diameter,
series of three photographs will be taken with hopes of
seeing the levitation phenomenon.
...] '
Euidence of large-scalecloud systems centered at about 4o41"N are aisible in tbis Voyager 2 image taken August 12, 1981
from about 13.9 million kilometers (the resolution is about 130 km). Tbe brigbt cloud is a large-scalestorm ubicb moaes
in an easterly wind. To tbe uest of tbis cloud are seoeralligbt and dark clouds. The "ribbonlike" feature in tbe white band
marks tbe bigh speedjet dt about 47"N uhere tbe @esterb/wind speedsare about 150 meters per second.
The fields and particles instruments are making cantinuous observations throughout the encounter phases.
Voyager 2 Voyager 1
aTimes
Earth-receipt of signal, Pacific Daylight Time. Events at the spacecraft occur about t hour 26 minutes 35 seconds prior to the
"re
times listed above {one-way light time, with radio signalstravelling at the 5peed of light).
bN".",
indicate closest approach to that body.
cE*cept
for Saturn, closest approach distances are from the center of the body, Closest approach to Saturn is given from the cloudtops.
dBest
resolution; best pictures are not necessarilytaken at time of closest approachesdue to lighting and other considerations.
lnlftetirl
M/SS/ON STATUS REPORTNO, 65 SEPTEM BER1, 1981
a,i:tii
rr.,l
]iiri,i:i]:.,:i;i:tii
Update
A trajectory correctionmaneuveron September29
will refine Yoyager 2's flight path to Uranus and target for
an aimpoint to Neptune. The spacecraft'sattitude control
thrusters will burn hydrazine fuel for severalhours to
changethe flight path. Severalmore trajectory corrections
will be necessarybefore Voyager 2 flies past Uranusin
January1986.
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Soace Administration
Jet Propulsion Laboratory RecordedMissionStatus(213) 354-7237
C a l i f o r n i aI n s t i t u t eo l T e c h n o l o o v Status BulletinEditor (213)354-4438
P a s a d e n a ,C a l i l o r n i a O f f i c e( 2 1 3 )3 5 4 - 5 0 1 1
P u b l i cI n f o r m a t i o n
,
A strangelt/ curled cloud in Saturn's northern mid'latitudes second (29O miles per bour). AIso eaident is a ibbon-like s*ucture
gradually unfolded as Voyager 2 obserued it, At left, it is at 47"N latitude in tbe wbite cloud region.
"corkscrew'\sbaped and at right, 64 bours later, it bas become more (L) 8/16/81 9.3 million km (5.8 million mi)
Iike a "6". It is attoched by a tbin ribbon of cloud to tbe bright (R) 8/20/81 6.4 million km G million mi)
ubite cloud regi.on to the north usherewinds blow 13o meters per
ii
Tbesepicturessbow tbe sameregionof tbe planet,but the frame on Tuo of thesestorms lose contrast in the greenimageand ate barely
tbe rigbt was taken tbrougb a aiolet fiher and the one on the left aisible. The tbird and largest feature, 3,OOOkm (1,900 mi) in
through a greenfilter. The oiolet image shows a bright band about diameter, is dark in tbe green and bas a measuredclocktoiserota-
3,OOOkm (1,9OOmi) uide north of three bright ooal cloud systems. tion. 8/19/81 7.1 million km (4.4 million mi)
not in the middle of a band. (However, it is sometimes tion rate of the bulk of Saturn's interior. This rate has been
difficult to ascertain boundaries between Saturn's belts and determined by the planetary radio astronomy experiment
zones since they appear differently depending^on the color to be 10 hours 39 minutes 24 seconds.
filter used to photograph them.) Between 35-N and 35-S
latitude, Saturn's winds blow consistently eastward, with
Cloud vortices (small hurricanes), jet streams, and
maximum speedsof at least 500 meters per second (1100
eddies are also evident at higher latitudes (up to 80oN) than
miles per hour) near the equator - four times the greatest
at Jupiter (50"N and S). A train of vortices is apparenr
winds on Jupiter. Few storm systems survive long due to
between 30o and 5ooN.
the tremendous forces which drive these winds. Although
Voyager 2 observed a gigantic storm system first seen by
Voyager 1 last fall, storms such as Jupiter's centuries-old For several days in late August, a large vortex in
Great Red Spot and 4o-year-old white ovals probably do Saturn's northern mid-latitudes unfolded asVoyager 2
not exist on Saturn. recorded its progress. Initially corkscrew-shaped, it became
more like a"6" and eventually formed a closed loop over a
The wind speedsare deduced from the time{apse period of seven rotations. Study of such events gives clues
images taken by the spacecraft and are relative to the rota- to the planet's atmospheric dynamics.
2
Twice as far from the Sun as is Jupiter, Saturn is much
colder, with temperatures of 80 to 95 Kelvin at the cloud-
tops (where the atmospheric pressure is one-fourth Earth's).
However, Saturn still radiates almost 2.5 times as much o
energy as it receivesfrom the Sun. Eighty-nine percent of o
Saturn's atmospheric mass is hydrogen, while most of the
! 40
remaining eleven percent is helium. This is much less helium o
!
that has been measured in Jupiter's atmosphere (L9o/o),and f
lends credence to the theory that Saturn's helium sinks
o
toward the center of the planet, providing a source of heat. 30
Traces of ammonia, phosphine, methane, ethane, acetylene,
methylacetylene, and propane have also been detected in
Saturn's atmosphere.
3
its width from the outer edge. With a lens power of 1500,
he reported seeing the inner shading and a division near the
K E E L E RD I V I S I O N edge of the A-Ring about one-sixth the width of the ring
from its outer edge. This is the location of the gap that
has been known as the Encke Division. The issue will be
discussed at the next IAU meeting.
h_340 km________rl
+ll+
1 0k m At least four distinct comPonents of Satum's F-Ring are resolaed in
this edge-on image taken by Voyager 2's camera just prior to ring
-
I
plane crossing. Tbe camera resolution is about 1O km. The pboto-
polarimeter, uitb a resolution of one city block, shows eaen more
l K E E L E RD I V I S I O N F-Ring components. NearlJ/ 25 degrees of tbe ring are oisible here.
8/26/81 1o3,ooo km (64,000 mi)
r
a
-rF
z 1 Ok m
U
G
z
K E E L E RD I V I S I O N
I:**.
The bigh resolution of Voyager 2's photopolarimeter reaealed
ringlets tbat are undetectable by the cameras or radio system, These
three plots sbou increasing resolution of an area including tbe
Keeler (Encke) Diaision and the edges of the A-Ring. Tbe amount of
starlight (from tbe distant star Delta Scorpii) passing tbrougb the
rings is plotted as a single line of oarying brigbtness. Peaks in tbe
curae indicate areas where there is little material to block the
passdge of starlight, wbile dips in tbe currse indicate areas uhere
starligbt is blocked by material Tbe Keeler Diaision is a relatbely
entptt) gap and therefore is seen as a peak in tbe top plot. Tbe dip in
the Keeler Ditision is probably tbe "kinky" ringlet pbotographed by
Voyager 2's camera. With increasing resolution (modngdown from
tbe top plot), d feature at tbe inner boundary betueen the A-Ring
and Keeler Dioision becomes apparent. Tbis feature is belieaed to be
a ringlet.
Update
Voyager 2 has completed nearly half of its journey to
Uranus, measuredfrom launch on August 20,1977 to
Uranus closestapproach on January 24, t986. The four-
year-old spacecraft, having travelled 2.4 billion kilometers
(1.5 biilion miles) continues to operate well. Analysis con-
tinues on its scan platform, which stuck shortly after closest
approach to Saturn on August 25. The platform has been
successfully maneuvered since then and prospects for a
successful Uranus encounter are good. The problem
appears to be related to lubrication, worn gear mechanisms,
and close clearancesbetween gears in the platform's azimuth
actuator.
N a t i o n a lA e r o n a u t i c sa n d
Space Administratlon
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Recorded Mission Status (213) 354-7237
C a l i l o r na I n s t l t u t eo f T e c h n o l o g y Status BulletinEditor (213) 354-4438
P a s a d e n aC , alilornia P u b l i c I n f o r m a t i o nO f f i c e ( 2 1 3 ) 3 5 4 - 5 0 11
Some of tbe Voyagers'best resolution
images of Saturn's ldrger satellites are shown
in tbis composite. The diagonal line refer-
ences tbe satellites' distances from Satunt to
scale. The box drausn ouer the rings indi.-
cates tbe area wbere most of tbe small satel-
lites are found. Mooing outztard from the
planet, tbe satellites are Mimas, Enceladus,
Tethys uith its tuo companions, Dione usitb
its stnall orbit-sharer, Rhea, immense Titan,
and Hyperion. Tbe line break indicates a
break in tbe scale since Iapetus and Pboebe
orbit at great distances beyond the other
satellites. Tbe satellites fall into tbree gen-
eral classes, the tiny "rocks", tbe medium-
sized icy satellites, and planet-sized Titan.
Tbe dark polar band in Titan's atmosphere
can be seen in this image.
The orbit of Titan appearsto be completelywithin that anothersmall body may be sharingthe orbit.
Saturn'smagnetosphere about 8o percentof the time, as
the magnetosphere boundary ebbsand flows with the Saturnis surroundedby two donut-shapedcloudsof
changingsolarpressure.The interactionof the satellites gases.The inner cloud (or torus) is comprisedof ionized
is a prime areaof study for the oxygen which is believedto originatefrom the icy satellites
with the magnetosphere
Tethys and Dione. The massof the oxygentorus is one-
Voyagers. As the inner satellitesorbit the planet, they
fiftieth that of the Io sulfur torus at Jupiter. Io's volcanoes
cleara path through the chargedparticlesin the magneto-
supply materialto the torus at the rate of one ton per sec-
sphereand leavea wake much like a motor boat leaves.
ond; Tethys and Dione supply materialat the rate of about
Like the motor boat's wake,the disturbancegradually
one pound per second.
quietsand returnsto normal until the satellitecomes
around again. In addition, the satellitesabsorbcharged The oxygen torus extendsto about halfway between
particlesasthey spiral down Saturn'smagneticfield the orbits of Dione and Rhea,whereit meetsthe inner
Iines. Measurements taken below the plane of the satellites edgeof a neutral hydrogentorus. This largertorus extends
showfewerprotonsin the satellites'"shadows".At Mimas, beyond the orbit of Titan to the magnetosheath.Its source
measurements of both the wake and the shadowindicate may be Titan's atmosphere.
\
I
i#^,, O RHEA
I
I
//
\ \-
VOyAGER 1
M A G N E T I CF I E L D L I N E S
Eight of Satum's small satellites are shown
in this composite of VoJ/ager 1 and 2
images. 198O528, 1980527, and 198O526
are sometimes called tbe "shepherding"
sdtellites ds tbq/ appear to influence tbe
F-Ring and the outer edge of the A-Ring.
Just 5O kilometers separates tbe orbits of
198O53 and 198O51, the co-orbitals.
1980513 and 198O525, tbe Tethys trojans,
occupJ/ Lagrangian points near the satellite,
as does 198O56, tbe Dione trojan.
Phoebe, the last of Saturn's satellites to be observed Space Science Reuiews, YoI. 2I, No. 2, November
by Voyager 2, is probably a captured asteroid. 1977.
Eight tiny moonlets also orbit Saturn. They appear to Space Science Reaiews, Vol. 21, No . 3, December
interact with the larger moons and to "control" the rings to 1977.
some degree. 1980528 orbits just outside the outer edge of
the A-Ring. t98OS27 and 1980526, the so-called "shep- Science, Yol. 2O4, June t, 1979, p p . 9 4 5 - 1 0 0 8 ,
herding" satellites, flank the F-Ring, apparently herding it 913-921(Voyager1 Jupiterresults).
between them. 1980S3 and 198051, the "co-orbitals",
share an orbit between the F- and G-Rings, playing a kind Science,Yol. 206, November23, L979, pp. 925-996
of cosmic leapfrog as they switch orbits in a four-year (Voyager2 Jupiterresults).
cycle. 1980513 and 1980525 share an orbit with Tethys,
occupying^mathematical points of stability (Lagrangian S c i e n c e ,Y o L 2 I 2 , A p r i l 1 0 , 1 9 8 1 , p p . L 5 9 - 2 4 3
points) 60" ahead and behind the larger satellite. (Voyager1 Saturnresults).
Similarly, 198056 orbits 60" ahead of Dione. Ground-
based searchesfor other tiny moons at Lagrangian points
Science (planned publication date January 1982)
of the other satellites have located none. However, a tiny
(Voyager2 Saturnresults).
moon is suspectedto share the orbit of Mimas, based on
data from the cosmic ray instrument.
('
-8