WELCOME TO N.A.S.A.'S JET PROPULSION LABORATORY. THE IT HAS ENDED THE END OF ITS JOURNEY. THE SPACECRAFT MADE ITS FINAL APPROACH TO THE PLANET AND PLUNGED INTO SATURN'S UPPER ATMOSPHERE, ENDING THE MISSION. DUE TO THE TIME IT TAKES FOR THE SIGNALS TO TRAVEL ALMOST A BILLION MILES BETWEEN THE PLANET AND EARTH, THE TEAM WON'T HAVE CONFIRMATION THAT THE MISSION HAS ENDED UNTIL THEY SEE ITS SIGNAL DROP AWAY. THE DEEP SPACE NETWORK IS MONITORING THE SIGNAL. AS YOU CAN SEE ON THE CSN NOW DISPLAY. IT'S BEING TRACKED BY A 70 METRE WIDE ANTENNA, AN ETEN A43 IN CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA. HERE IS A -- ANTENNA 43 IN CANBERRA AUSTRALIA. THEY'RE KEEPING AN EYE ON THE TRANSMISSION. MEANWHILE IT IS 4AM HERE IN CALIFORNIA. THE SUN IS NOT UP YET AND MORE THAN 1500 SCIENTISTS, ENGINEERS, ALUMNI FRIENDS AND FAMILY HAVE GATHERED FOR THIS MOMENT. THE FLIGHT TEAM IS IN THE MISSION CONTROL AREA. OTHERS HAVE GATHERED IN JPL AND STILL MORE ARE AT CALTECK IN PASADENA. FOLKS WANTED TO BE TOGETHER TO JOIN THIS MOMENT. IT IS A VISUAL BUT ALSO A CELEBRATION OF A REMARKABLE MISSION. THIS IS THE LAST HOUR OF THE LAST CHAPTER OF THE GRAND FINALE. [ ♪♪♪ ]. >> AN LONE EXPLORER, ON A MISSION TO REVEAL THE GRANDEUR OF SATURN, IT'S RINGS AND MOONS. [ ♪♪♪ ]. >> AFTER 20 YEARS IN SPACE, N.A.S.A.'S SPACECRAFT IS RUNNING OUT OF FUEL. SO TO PROTECT THE MOONS OF SATURN WHICH COULD HAVE AN AREA FOR LIFE, CONDITIONS FOR LIFE. >> THREE, TWO, ONE, AND LIFT OFF OF THE SPACECRAFT ON A TREK TO SATURN. [♪] IN 2004 FOLLOWING A SEVEN-YEAR JOURNEY THROUGH THE SOLAR SYSTEM, IT ARRIVES AT SATURN. >> THE SPACECRAFT CARRIED A PASSENGER, THE EUROPEAN PROBE, THE FIRST HUMAN-MADE OBJECT TO LAND IN A WORLD IN THE OUTER SOLAR SYSTEM. FOR OVER A DECADE IT WILL SHARE THE WONDERS OF SATURN AND ITS FAMILY OF ICY MOONS, TAKING US TO ANOTHER WORLD, WHERE JETS OF ICE AND GAS ARE BLASTING MATERIAL INTO SPACE FROM THE LIQUID WATER OCEAN THAT MIGHT HARBOUR THE INGREDIENTS FOR LIFE. AND SATURN, A GIANT WORLD RULED BY RAGING STORMS AND DELICATE HARMONIES OF GRAVITY. NOW IT HAS ONE LAST ASSIGNMENT. [♪] THE GRAND FINALE IS A BRAND NEW ADVENTURE. AS IT REPEATEDLY BRAVES THIS UNEXPLORED REGION, IT SEEKS NEW INSIGHTS ABOUT THE ORIGINS OF THE RAIN AND THE NATURE OF THE PLANET'S INTERIOR, CLOSER TO SATURN THAN EVER BEFORE. ON THE FINAL ORBIT, IT WILL PLUNGE INTO SATURN SATE FIGHTING TO KEEP POINTED AT EARTH AS IT TRANSMITS ITS FAREWELL. IN THE SKIES OF SATURN, THE JOURNEY ENDS. IT BECOMES PART OF THE PLANET. [ ♪♪♪ ] [ ♪♪♪ ] [♪] OKAY. LET'S DO THE NUMBERS. THE MISSION HAS TRAVELLED NEARLY 5 BILLION MILES SINCE LAUNCH, EXECUTED 2.5 MILLION COMMANDS, TAKEN 453,000 PLUS IMAGES, DISCOVERED SIX MOONS, PUBLISHED NEARLY 4,000 SCIENCE PAPERS AND IT'S NOT DONE. IT IS SENDING HOME DATA RIGHT NOW RIGHT TO THE END. LET'S TAKE A LOOK NOW AND TALK TO THE PROGRAM MANAGER ABOUT THIS. AFTER A LINE-UP LIKE THAT, YOU HAVE TO BE IMPRESSED. >> WE WERE IMPRESSED. -- WE ARE IMPRESSED. WE'RE PROUD OF WHAT WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH OVER THE LAST 13 YEARS. >>> WHY MUST WE END IT THIS WAY? >> IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT A LITTLE BIT, YOU WILL FIND OUT WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY CHOICE. IT MUST BE DISPOSED OF PROPERLY. AT SOME POINT. THERE ARE INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS THAT WE CAN'T ALLOW IT THERE. WE HAVE GOT TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. WE COULD HAVE SENT IT AWAY FROM SATURN, BUT SATURN WAS SO COMPELLING, SO EXCITING AND THE MISSION THAT WE FINALLY CAME UP WITH IS SO RICH SCIENTIFICALLY THAT WE HAD TO FINISH UP AT SATURN, NOT SOME PLACE ELSE. THE MISSION REALLY STARTED ABOUT SEVEN YEARS AGO. WE'VE BEEN ON THIS PATH TO END UP RIGHT NOW IN LESS THAN AN HOUR. >>> LET'S TALK ABOUT WHAT IS ABOUT TO HAPPEN AND WALK VIEWERS THROUGH WHAT TO EXPECT. >> SURE. >>> IT STARTS WITH MONDAY AND THE KISS GOODBYE. COULD YOU TALK ABOUT THAT. >> OKAY. THIS FIRST GRAPHIC, THIS IS THE LAST 22 MOVEMENTS OF SATURN. THEY ARE GOING BETWEEN THE RINGS AND SATURN UNEXPLORED TERRITORY, FANTASTIC SCIENCE EVERY TIME. WHAT'S BEEN ALSO HAPPENING IS THAT OUT OF THERE FURTHER AWAY IS TITAN AND THAT COMES BY EVERY NOW AND AGAIN, AND YOU WILL SEE IT FOR ONE LAST FINAL KISS GOODBYE. THAT WAS IT. IT WAS VERY QUICK. DON'T BLINK. WHAT HAPPENED ON MONDAY WAS THAT TITAN CAME BY AND GIVE ONE LAST NUDGE, IT SLOWS DOWN JUST ENOUGH SO THAT OUR ENTRY INTO SATURN IN A FEW MINUTES NOW IS ABSOLUTELY INEVITABLE. >>> SO, THE FATE IS JUST SEALED. >> SEALED ABSOLUTELY DONE. THERE WASN'T MUCH WE COULD HAVE DONE ABOUT IT BEFORE BECAUSE IT HAD BEEN SO WIRED IN, BUT AFTER THE TITANFULLY BUY THERE'S NOTHING -- TITN FULLY BUY, THERE IS NOTHING WOULD CAN DO. >> IT IS STILL A SCIENCE MACHINE. MOST OF WHAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING IS GATHERING MORE SCIENCE. IF YOU LOOK AT THIS GRAPHIC, THERE IS THE TITAN, THE KISS GOODBYE ON SEPTEMBER 11, THEN TURNING AROUND, PLAYED ALL THE DATA BACK, IT'S ON THE MONITORS AS YOU CAN SEE, PLAY BACK ALL THE DATA, GOOD VIEWS OF THE LAKES AND THE CLOUDS AGAIN, THEN IT TURNED BACK AROUND AGAIN FOR ITS FINAL SET OF SCIENCE OBSERVATIONS. WE ACTUALLY DID A LITTLE BIT OF SCIENCE AND A LITTLE BIT OF JUST LAST PICTURES, RINGS, PLANET AND WE WANT TO LOOK AT THE PROPELLARS THERE. THERE IS A LITTLE BIT OF SCIENCE AND JUST KIND OF LAST PHOTOS AND THEY WERE PLAYED BACK YESTERDAY AFTERNOON. IT TURNED BACK FOR A FINAL CALL TO EARTH, PLAYED THE DATA BACK. IT IS AVAILABLE. ABOUT 1 O'CLOCK MORNING ALL THE DATA WAS ON THE GROUND. IT THEN WENT UP FOR, GOING BACK TO THE TIMELINE FOR A MOMENT. GO BACK ONE. SEPTEMBER 15 AT 1.37, DOWN TO THE LAST PLOT, WE HAD A REAL TIME SATURN PROBE. EVERYTHING THAT COMES INTO THE SPACECRAFT GOES RIGHT OUT. SO THERE IS NO DELAY, OR LITTLE DELAY, SO WE CAN BECOME AN ATMOSPHERE SAMPLING MISSION. AT 4.55AM, GIVE OR TAKE A FEW SECONDS ON THAT, WE WILL BE ENTERING INTO SATURN'S ATMOSPHERE. >>> TO THE NEXT DISPLAY. THIS IS WHAT IS GOING TO BE HAPPENING WITHIN THE LAST HOUR. >> THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT. WE CAME IN OVER THE NORTH, JUST A LITTLE BIT EAST FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE. ACTUALLY IT LOOKS WEST HERE, BUT OVER THE NORTH POLE, JUST BEFORE 4 O'CLOCK MORNING. WE WERE 6 DEGREES NORTH. AS YOU CAN SEE, THAT DESCENT IS RAPID. IN 20 MINUTES WE WILL BE AT 50 DEGREES NORTH AND 12 MINUTES LATER, 40 AND VERY RAPIDLY INCREASING. THE 10 DEGREE NORTH LATITUDE IMPACT POINT IS JUST ABOUT WHERE WE'RE GOING TO FINISH UP. IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN ABOUT FIVE OF FIVE THIS MORNING LOCAL TIME. >>> THE LAST 90 SECONDS. >> THE LAST 90 SECONDS, THIS IS REALLY WHERE IT IS GOING TO BE HAPPENING. IT IS NOT GOING TO NOTICE SATURN UNTIL THE LAST 90 SECONDS BECAUSE IT'S IN FREE FALL AROUND THE GRAVITATIONAL BODY. IT IS DOING ITS THING, BUT BETWEEN 70 AND 60 SECONDS OUT FROM FINAL IMPACT, IT WILL START TO NOTICE THE ATMOSPHERE AND YOU CAN SEE IN THIS GRAPHIC THE VERY TENUOUS ATMOSPHERE STARTING TO EXPERIENCE. IT HAS BEEN FIGHTING THAT ATMOSPHERE BEFORE. AS A MATTER OF FACT FOR THE LAST FIVE REVS WE'VE BEEN DOING THAT. IT HAS DONE VERY WELL, BUT THIS TIME BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO GO IN SO DEEP, THERE'S NOT A CHANCE THAT IT CAN FIGHT TO HOLD ON TO THE ATMOSPHERE. THAT ATMOSPHERE WHERE WE HAVE BEEN FIGHTING IS SO FAR ABOUT THE SAME DENSITY AS THE ATMOSPHERE THAT'S IN THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION HERE ON EARTH. VERY THIN, BUT WE'RE GOING VERY, VERY FAST. >>> ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE THE ANIMATION FROM THE VIDEO EARLIER. >> OKAY. >>> IT HELPS US ENVISION, ALTHOUGH IT MIGHT BE PAINFUL TO WATCH. >> WELL, IT IS ACTUALLY, WATCHING THIS, YOU CAN SEE THE THRUSTERS COMING OUT OF BACK TO BACK. IT STARTS TO ENCOUNTER THE ATMOSPHERE. THOSE ARE SMALL THRUSTERS. THEY JUST ARE NOT BUILT TO FIGHT THE KIND OF TORQUES. THAT'S THE ANTENNA. THE THEY'RE NOT BUILD TO HANDLE THE ATMOSPHERIC TORQUE AND DRAG THAT IT WILL EXPERIENCE. FOR ABOUT A MINUTE, IT WILL HANG ON. WE WILL BE SAMPLING THE ATMOSPHERE, SENDING THE DATA BACK AS QUICKLY AS WE CAN AND THEN FINALLY, OF COURSE, IT IS GOING TO LOSE THE BATTLE AND WITHIN THE NEXT MINUTE WILL BE WITHIN THE NEXT MINUTE, IT WILL BECOME COMPLETELY AND TOTALLY VAPORIZED, BECOMING PART OF THE PLANET IT WENT TO EXPLORE. >> AS PLANNED. >> EXACTLY. >> FOR THE TEAM, IT IS BITTERSWEET. THERE'S TREMENDOUS ENERGY HERE. I THINK WE'RE EXCITED. THIS IS EXACTLY THE WAY WE ALWAYS PLANNED THIS. NOW IT'S WORKING EXACTLY THE WAY WE SET IT UP. THE IMAGES -- >> THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US. I'LL LET YOU BACK IN THE ROOM. I KNOW YOU WANT TO BE BACK IN HERE. MEANWHILE, DSN43 IN AUSTRALIA IS THE ANTENNA LOCKED ON THE SIGNAL. LET'S CHECK THE UPDATE DISPLAY. THE EXPECTED LOSS OF SIGNAL IS 4:55 A.M., AND THAT IS ABOUT 41 MINUTES AWAY FROM NOW. >> WE'VE MANAGED TO INSPIRE A YOUNGER GENERATION OF SCIENTISTS, AND THEY WILL CONTINUE AFTER THIS IS OVER AND AFTER THE ORIGINAL INVESTIGATORS ARE GONE TO MARCH ON FOR THEIR OWN CHALLENGES FOR FUTURE SPACECRAFT EXPLORATION. >> LET'S LOOK BACK TO WHAT INSPIRED THE MISSION, AND THE DAY CASSINI ARRIVED AT SATURN. IT WAS A JOINT EFFORT OF NASA, THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY AND ITALIAN SPACE AGENCY. SCIENTISTS ALL OVER THE WORLD INSISTED THEY HAD TO GO BACK. >> HELLO. THANKS TO THE WORLDWIDE WEB, I HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING THE PROGRESS OF CASSINI FROM THE TIME OF LAUNCH SEVERAL YEARS AGO. AS YOU KNOW, THERE IS BLOSSOMING INTEREST IN SATURN. SO I'M GOING TO BASE MY COURSE ON WHAT CASSINI DISCOVERS. WHO KNOWS. OUR SURVIVAL ON EARTH MAY DEPEND ON WHAT WE DISCOVER THERE. >> OKAY. WE ARE COMPLETE. >> FOR SATURN'S STRONG GRAVITY BURNING IN, OR POINTING DIRECTION, AND WE'LL HOPE TO ACQUIRE A SIGNAL BEFORE THAT TURN COMPLETES. THE COMPLETION OF THAT TURN IS AROUND -- >> THE WORDS YOU HEARD ANNOUNCING THE ARRIVAL OF JUNE 30th, 2004, WAS THE VOICE OF CASSINI ENGINEER, TODD BARBER, AND HE IS BACK HERE AGAIN TODAY. >> IT'S COOL TO AGE 13 YEARS IN TWO SECONDS AND HAVE TO WATCH THAT. BUT WHAT A DEMONSTRATION OF THE LONGEVITY OF THIS MISSION. AS YOU AND I SAT THERE IN 2004, WE NEVER DREAMT WE'D BE HERE IN 2017 STILL TALKING ABOUT CASSINI AND COLLECTING SCIENCE DATA. I'M THRILLED TO BE HERE, EVEN HAVING AGED SOME YEARS. >> EXPLAIN TO US WHY THE TEAM HAS GATHERED HERE, EVEN THOUGH YOU HAD TOLD ME THAT THE SPACECRAFT MET ITS FATE PROBABLY ABOUT 3:30 PACIFIC TIME OUT AT SATURN, BUT YET THE TEAM IS WAITING HERE NOW AND HOLDING VIGIL. WHY IS THAT? >> IT'S THAT PESKY ALBERT EINSTEIN AND HIS SPEED OF LIGHT SPEED LIMIT. SO SATURN IS ABOUT AN HOUR AND 23 MINUTES AWAY FROM US. I'M A BIG SPORTS NUT. I TAKE GAMES AND DVR THEM. THE GAME IS SO EXCITING IF YOU DON'T KNOW THE RESULT, AND NO ONE HAS SEEN CASSINI'S LAST BITS OF SCIENCE COME BACK YET. IT'S JUST ABOUT TO CROSS THE ORBIT OF JUPITER. THERE'S OUR GRAPHIC. JUPITER'S A DIFFERENT POSITION. THEY'LL KNOW CASSINI'S FATE AND LAST BIT OF DATA BEFORE WE WILL ON EARTH. SO WE'RE HOLDING VIGIL HERE. WE ALSO HAVE THIS DISPLAY, KIND OF LIKE GAUGES IN YOUR CAR. THIS IS THE SPEED NOTICE 63,000 MILES PER HOUR AND CLIMBING AS WE DESCEND INTO SATURN'S GRAVITY WELL. AND ON THE RIGHT SIDE IS THE DISTANCE FROM THE CLOUD TOPS, AND THAT'S SHRINKING. IT'S GOING TO HEAD DOWN OVER THE NEXT 37 MINUTES AS WE HEAD DOWN. >> AND TODD, HELP US UNDERSTAND HOW THEND TEAM WILL BE MONITORING THIS. >> YES, WE'VE GOT A FEW WAYS. THERE'S A DISPLAY FROM -- HERE'S OUR RADIO SIGNAL. SO THIS IS THE CARRIER FREQUENCY. AND WHAT I LIKE TO POINT OUT HERE, THE PEAK IN THE MIDDLE, THIS IS THE LOUDNESS OR THE SIGNAL STRENGTH. AND THE CASSINI FREQUENCY THAT IT'S TALKING. WE HAVE X BAND AND S BAND, TWO DIFFERENT RADIO FREQUENCIES. IF YOU THINK IN YOUR CAR RADIO OF TUNING TO DIFFERENT FREQUENCIES, THAT'S LIKE MOVING ALONG THE X AXIS, THE HORIZONTAL AXIS. WE'RE GETTING A NICE, BIG, STRONG, BOOMING SIGNAL FROM THE X AXIS. AS WE COME INTO THE ATMOSPHERE AND TURN AWAY FROM EARTH, OUR THRUSTERS CAN'T KEEP UP ANYMORE WITH THE TORQUE. THOSE WILL FLAT LINE AND THAT'S WHEN WE'LL SAY GOOD-BYE. THE KEY IS TO KEEP THE DATA COMING DOWN TO EARTH AND GET THE PRECIOUS LAST FEW BITS OF SCIENCE DATA FROM SATURN, OUR FIRST SNIP OF THE UPPER SATURN ATMOSPHERE, AND BOY WE'RE EXCITED FOR THAT. >> ALL RIGHT. THANKS TODD. WE WILL CHECK BACK WITH YOU LATER. AND ONE OF THE SIGNALS TODD SHOWED YOU IS PART OF A COMPUTER VISUALIZATION TOOL THAT WE CALL EYES ON THE SOLAR SYSTEM, THE JPL COMPUTER SIMULATION SOFTWARE ISOF BASED ON REAL DATA FROM MISSIONS, AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT YOUET CAN DOWNLOAD ON YOUR OWN COMPUTER AND FOLLOW ALONG THIS MORNING. GO TO EYES.NASA.GOV, DOWNLOAD THE APP, AND CLICK ON CASSINI'S TOUR. HERE ARE TWO FAMILY PHOTOS WE'D LIKE TO SHARE. THE TOP ONE WAS TAKEN JUNE 21, 2017. IT'S THE TEAM AND ALUMNI, AND THEY, FILLED THE STAIRCASE ON THE MALL HERE. MOST OF THEM ARE ENGINEERS. ON THE BOTTOM PHOTO, AND THIS ONE WAS TAKEN JUST A FEW DAYS AGO, IT'S THE SCIENCE TEAM AT CAL TECH. THE TEAM INCLUDES SCIENTISTS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. OVER THE YEARS, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HAVE WORKED ON THIS MISSION. THERE ARE SO MANY MEMBERS OF THE CASSINI FAMILY, WE COULDN'T FIT THEM ALL HERE AT JPL. THAT'S WHY THERE'S A BIG CROWD IN PASADENA, WHERE CASSINI SCIENCE TEAM MEMBER, MORGAN CABLE, IS RIGHT NOW. WHAT IS IT LIKE OUT THERE? >> Reporter: HI, HERE AT CAL TECH, YOU CAN HEAR IT BEHIND ME RIGHT? THIS IS AN HISTORIC MOMENT. AND I THINK THE MOOD REFLECTS THAT. BUT IT'S ALSO LIKE A FAMILY REUNION. WE'RE HERE WITH OUR OTHER FELLOW CASSINI FAMILY MEMBERS. WE'RE SEEING PEOPLE WE HAVEN'T SEEN FOR A LONG TIME FOR SOME CASES. IT'S JUST BEEN WONDERFUL TO SHARE THESE MEMORIES, TO REVEL IN THEEVE EXCITEMENT. THIS IS A CELEBRATION OF AN AMAZING MISSION AND AN INCREDIBLE LEGACY. >> MORGAN, YOU'RE ONE OF THE SCIENTISTS -- YOU'RE ONE OF THE SCIENTISTS OUT THERE. FOR YOU, YOU'RE PROBABLY BEING VERY REFLECTIVE. WHAT WAS ONE OF THE HIGHLIGHTS FOR YOU THIS MISSION? >> FOR ME PERSONALLY, THE DISCOVERIES HAVE REALLY REVOLUTIONIZED OUR VIEW OF WHERE WE MIGHT FIND LIFE, OR AT LEAST CONDITIONS SUITABLE FOR LIFE IN NOT ONLY OUR SOLAR SYSTEM, BUT THE UNIVERSE. WE'VE LEARNED THERE ARE PLACES WHERE LIQUID WATER AND THE OTHER INGREDIENTS FOR LIFE AS WE KNOW IT DO EXIST. THAT'S THANKS TO THE CASSINI MISSION, WHICH THROUGH THROUGH THE PLUME OF INSELIDIS. NOW WE CAN START TO LOOK FOR PLACES LIKE INSELIDIS OR UROTHA AND EXTEND OUR SEARCH TO TRY TO FIND THAT AMAZING DISCOVERY OF LIFE SOMEWHERE ELSE. >> WE WILL BE CHECKING BACK WITH YOU, MORGAN, LATER ON IN THE SHOW. THANKS FOR THAT REPORT. IT ISR ABOUT 23 MINUTES PAST THE HOUR. YOU'RE WATCHING LIVE COVERAGE, MARKING THE FINAL MOMENTS OF NASA TV, THE DEEP SPACE NETWORK IS AWAITING THE LOSS OF SIGNAL. AND LET'S GO TO CASSINI'S FINAL HOUR DISPLAY. ATLA THIS POINT THE SPACECRAFT HAS SENT US DATA FROM ABOUT THE 50 DEGREE NORTH LATITUDE MARK AND LOSS OF SIGNAL SHOULD BE COMING ABOUT 32 MINUTES FROM NOW. ♪♪ ♪♪ >> BEAUTIFUL IMAGES FROM CASSINI. THE MISSION MADE SO MANY HISTORIC DISCOVERIES. THE PROBE SENT BACK DETAILS OF AN ALIEN WORLD, A WORLD THAT APPEARS TO BE VERY SIMILAR TO EARTH. IT FOUND JET SPRANG WATER ICE AND ORGANICS ON THE SOUTH POLES OF ENCELADUS, AN OCEAN WHERE THERE COULD BE LIFE. THE MISSION REVEALED SCIENTIFIC WONDERS ABOUT SATURN, ITS RINGS AND MOONS, AND IT HASN'T STOPPED. AT LEAST NOT YET. WITH ME NOW IS CASSINI PROJECT SCIENTIST, LINDA SPOKER. THIS MISSION WAS DETERMINED TO SEND DOWN SCIENCE RIGHT DOWN TO THE VERY END. >> THAT'S RIGHT, TO THE VERY LAST SECOND. WE WERE TOLD A LITTLE WHILE AGO, THAT OVERNIGHT THE SPACECRAFT SENT BACK THE LAST PICTURE SHOW, IT'S BEEN CALLED. CAN YOU DESCRIBEE WHAT THOSE ARE? >> LET'S GO TO THE VERY FIRST IMAGE, IMAGE A, PROBABLY THE LAST PICTURE SHOWN. THE FIRST THING WE DID WAS MAKE A COLOR MOSAIC, AND THESE ARE A COUPLE OF PICTURES FROM THAT MOSAIC. WE'LL STITCH THOSE TOGETHER AND HAVE A BEAUTIFUL IMAGE OF SATURN PLUS THE RINGS. IF WE GO TO IMAGE C, THAT'S A MOVIE OF ENCELADUS SETTING BEHIND THE RING OF SATURN. >> TELL ME HOW THE TEAM DECIDED TO COME UP WITH THIS IMAGERY AND THIS SELECTION? >> THERE'S A LOT OF SCIENCE IN THESE IMAGES. THERE'S WHENCE ENCELADUS SETTING BEHIND THE RING OF SATURN. GOOD-BYE TO ENCELADUS, AND WE WANTED TO DO A SURVEY AND LOOK AT EACH OF THESE KEY TARGETS AND COLLECT POSTCARDSEY FOR OUR SCRAPBOOK. IF YOU LOOK AT IMAGE D, THAT'S A TRUE COLOR IMAGE OF TITAN, AND YOU CAN SEE THE LIGHTS UP IN THE NORTH. IMAGE F SHOWS THIS IN A FALSE COLOR, THERE'S A UV FILTER, AND THE LIGHTS REALLY POP OUT. AND YOU CAN SEE THAT BLUISH HAZE AT THE EDGE OF TITAN. TITAN HAS A THICK NITROGEN ATMOSPHERE. WE TOOK PICTURES OF THE RINGS, IF YOU GO TO IMAGE G, WE'RE LOOKING FOR PROPELLERS. YOU CAN JUST SEE A HINT OF IT ABOVE THAT DARK GAP. IF WE GO TO IMAGE H, THAT'S A BLOW UP. SEE THAT TWO-ARM PROPELLER? IT'S THE WHITE FEATURE ABOVE THE DARK GAP. THERE'S A COLLECTION OF RING PARTICLES THATRK ARE LARGE ENOUGH, TRYING TO OPEN THEIR OWN GAP. AND THEY CREATE WHAT LOOKS LIKE AN AIRPLANE PROPELLER. AND THEY HAVE FUN NAMES OF AVIATORS. YOU CAN SEE THE CRINKLY EDGES ALONG THE GAP? THAT'S CREATED BY GAS IN THE SYSTEM. AND FINALLY IMAGE J THIS IS AN IMAGE LOOKING AT SATURN IN A PLACE WHERE CASSINI WILL BE ENTERING, ONE OF OUR LAST PICTURES OF SATURN. YOU CAN THINK OF CASSINI RUNNING A MARATHON. FOR 13 YEARS WE HAVE BEEN RUNNING A MARATHON FOR SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY, AND WE'RE ON THE LAST LAP. SO WE'RE HERE TODAY TO CHEER AS CASSINI FINISHES THAT RACE. >> NOW, MANY OF THESE IMAGES AND WHAT THE SPACECRAFT WILL BE DOING RIGHT NOW, ALL OF THIS IS UNKNOWN TERRITORY. THEIT SPACECRAFT HAS NEVER BEEN HERE BEFORE. >> THAT'S RIGHT. WE'RE FLYING INTO SATURN MORE DEEPLY THAN WE HAVE EVER FLOWN BEFORE. THE KEY INSTRUMENT IS THE NEUTRAL MASS SPECTROMETER. IT IS ORIENTED TO SAMPLE THE ATMOSPHERE'S LEVEL. IT WILL SEND BACK THE LAST VERY VALUABLE PACKETS OF DATA. >> AND WHO KNOWS HOW MANY PHD THESIS MIGHT BE IN THIS DATA. >> WE WILL HAVE SCIENTISTS AND STUDENTS LOOKING OVER THIS DATA FOR YEARS TO COME. >> WE WILL HOPE TO UNDERSTAND HOW SATURN FORMED, EVOLVED, AND WHO KNOWS WHAT ELSE WE'LL SEE. >> WHAT GREAT SCIENCE IS STILL AHEAD. LINDA, THANKS FOR JOINING US. >> YEAH, GLAD TO BE HERE. >> YOU'RE WATCHING LIVE COVERAGE OF CASSINI'S FINAL HOUR. JPL IS MANAGED BY THE CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OFOR TECHNOLOGY. LET'S CHECK OUT OUR DISPLAY. WE ARE NOW ABOUT JUST A LITTLE UNDER 26 MINUTES FROM THE END OF MISSION. MISSION. ♪♪ ♪♪ >> HERE IS ONE EXAMPLE OF A TEAM THAT LEARNS TOGETHER PLAYS TOGETHER. THE SINGERS HAVE A KNACK FOR PUTTING A CASSINI SPIN ON JUST ABOUT ANY SHOW TUNE. AND I SAW TODD BARBER IN THAT GROUP. IT IS A VERY CLOSE KNIT GROUP, AND A MULTIGENERATIONAL GROUP. SOME PEOPLE HAVE SPENT THEIR ENTIRE CAREERS ON THIS MISSION, AND OTHERS ARE JUST STARTING THEIR CAREERS ON CASSINI. TODDSI BARBER IS STANDING BY WITH ONE OF THE YOUNGER MEMBERS OF THE TEAM, GUIDANCE AND CONTROL ENGINEER WHO STARTED HER CAREER WITH CASSINI, RIGHT? >> CAN YOU EXPLAIN TO OUR VIEWERS? >> ABSOLUTELY. I AND MY TEAM ARE IN CHARGE OF THE ORIENTATION. WE POINT ALL OF THE CAMERAS AND THE ANTENNA. >> THAT'S GREAT. AND YOU HAVE A PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT ROLE THIS EVENING RIGHT? OR THIS MORNING, I GUESS I SHOULD SAY? >> ISA HAVE ALLUDED TO WE WANT TO GET EVERY LAST POSSIBLE SECOND OF INFORMATION, WHICH MEANS OUR ANTENNA NEEDS TO BE POINTED TOWARDS EARTH AS LONG AS WE POSSIBLY CAN. >> HOW DO YOU DO THAT? >> WE HAVE LITTLE ENGINES OR THRUSTERS. >> WE WILL LOSE THE BATTLE WITH SATURN'S ATMOSPHERE. >> WE TRY AND HOLD THAT ANTENNA FOR ASE LONG AS WE CAN. THAT WILL LAST FOR ONLY ABOUT A MINUTE. >> WOW. THAT'S -- AMAZING. THOSE PRECIOUS SECONDS OF SCIENCE DATA ARE WORTH EVERY PULSE WE PUT UP THERE. >> EVERY SECOND. WE'RE LEARNING ALL ABOUT SATURN'S ATMOSPHERE WITH ALL THE INSTRUMENTS WE CAN. WE WANT TO POINT AS LONG AS WE CAN. >> YOU STARTED YOUR CAREER HERE. HOW ARE YOU FEELING TONIGHT KNOWING WE HAVE TO SAY GOOD-BYE TO OUR BEAUTIFUL SPACECRAFT? >> I STARTED MY CAREER, I WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL WHEN CASSINI ARRIVED AT SATURN. SO YOU .KNOW, IT'S REALLY EXCITING AND I'M PROUD TO HAVE WORKED ON SUCH AN INCREDIBLE MISSION AND BE PART OF SUCH A WONDERFUL FAMILY. I'M USED TO CHECKING HOW THE SPACECRAFTK IS FEELING EVERY MORNING, SO LIT BE A LITTLE SAD TO NOT HAVE THAT ANYMORE. >> WE GOT A FEW TRUCKS UP THEIR SLEEVES. IF WE CAN HEAD BACK TO THE RADIO SCIENCE DISPLAY AND CHECK AND SEE -- >> SO SO FAR SO GOOD. BACK TO YOU. >> THANKS, TODD, THANKS, JOANIE. IT IS ABOUT 33 MINUTES PAST THE HOUR, AND THE ESTIMATED TIME OF LOSS OF SIGNAL IS 4:55 A.M. PACIFIC. ♪♪ >> THE CASSINI MISSION HAS BEEN AN EPIC ADVENTURE AROUND THE SATURN SYSTEM. IT HAS SENT HOME MOUNTAINS OF SCIENCE DATA AND STUNNING IMAGES. THE SPACECRAFT PERFORMED BEAUTIFULLY. MEMBERS OF THE MISSION SAY THEY COULDN'T HAVE ASKED ♪♪ ♪♪ >> I'VE WORKED ON THE CASSINI PROJECT FOR ALMOST 30 YEARS, AND THAT'S AN ENTIRE SATURN ORBIT. >> THE BEAUTY IS THE DESIGN. IT'S THE LARGEST EVER BUILT, 12 DIFFERENT INSTRUMENTS. THE PROBE FROM THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY, IT'S JUST A MONUMENTAL MACHINE. >> THREE, TWO, ONE, AND LIFT-OFF! >> I REMEMBER COMING BACK TO JPL EARLY IN THE MORNING SO I COULD BE THERE ANLDD WATCH THE PICTURES, ONE BY ONE, COME DOWN. I FELT LIKE I COULD ALMOST REACH OUT AND TOUCH THE RINGS THAT WERE RIGHT THERE. >> WE'VE BEEN COLLABORATING SINCEIN LAUNCH TO BE SURE WE HAD EVERYTHING RIGHT. >> THE PROBE WAS DROPPED ON TO TITAN. THESE ARE IMAGES FROM A BILLION MILES AWAY ON THE SURFACE OF TITAN. >> WE REMAPPED TO CONCENTRATE ON THE QUESTIONS THAT CASSINI RAISED. >> THE PLUME OF ENCELADUS, TESTING THE GAS AND MEASURING PARTICLES IN A WAY THAT WE HADN'T PLANNED. CASSINI HAS CHANGED THE PARADIGM IN WHERE WE LOOK FOR LIFE. >> 13 YEARS OF EXPLORING SATURN. IT REALLY IS JUST A SMOOTH OPERATION. >> JOINING ME NOW IS JIM GREEN. SOME OF CASSINI'S GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS CAME AS BIG SURPRISES, DIDN'T THEY? >> THEY DID. ABSOLUTELY. >> THAT GAVE A HINT THAT SOMETHING WAS GOING ON AND IT NEEDED TO BE LOOKED AT. THE NEXT PASS, THEY CAME UP WITH THE IDEA, WELL, LET'S LOOK AT IT IN BACK LIGHT, AND WOW, THERE WERE THE PLUMES. AND THAT STARTED, THEN, A SERIES OF NEW ORBITS AND TRAJECTORIES TO GO THROUGH AND TASTE THE PLUMES AND GET MORE DETAILS ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING AT ENCELADUS. >> HOW DOES THIS CHANGE THE WAY WE LOOK FOR LIFE IN THIS SOLAR SYSTEM? >> THIS IS REALLY A CALLING, IF YOU WILL, OF HEY, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TOO COME BACK. THERE'S SEVERAL THINGS WE KNOW ABOUT LIFE. ONE, IT METABOLIZES AND TAKES IN A LIQUID. AND LIKE I CAN'T MEASURE ANY OF THOSE OTHER THAN GOING AFTER WATER. ONCE WE SEE AN AREA THAT HAS WATER, WE KNOW IT'S A POSSIBILITY OF BEING A HABITABLE ENVIRONMENT. >> AND TRANSITIONING TO THE OTHER BIG STORIES IS ANOTHER MOON, TITAN. >> OH YEAH, TITAN. WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MOON THIS IS. YOU KNOW, IT'S BIGGER THAN THE PLANET MERCURY. ONE.ATMOSPHERE IS A SIGNIFICANT IT'S TWICE THE PRESSURE WE HAVE HERE ON EARTH. IT'S SIMILAR IN THE SENSE THAT IT HAS A LOT OF NITROGEN, IN FACT IT'S DOMINATED BY NITROGEN. BUT IT ALSO HAS LIQUID ON ITS SURFACE, WHICH WE KNOW NOW IS METHANE. >> INCREDIBLE SCIENCE LEGACY, BUT TITAN ALSO HELPED US WITH AN ENGINEERING LEGACY AS WELL. >> THE CONCEPT OF USING TITAN TO DO LUNAR -- TO DO GRAVITY ASSIST, SWING BYES THAT ENABLE IT TO GET INTO DIFFERENT ORBITS IS A FABULOUS CONCEPT. WHILE WE WERE DOING THAT, AND HERE'S THE KOOSH BALL, ALL OF THE FLY BYES ALLOW US TO LOOK AT TITAN IN DETAIL. FROM MULTIPLE FLY BYES, WE CAN GET A GLOBAL VIEW OF THAT MOON, AND WE'RE USING THAT SAME CONCEPT AT JUPITER WITH ANOTHER MOON CALLED EUROPA. >> BEFORE WE GO, I WANTED TO BRING UP THE E BOOK, ONE OF THE MOST FANTASTIC THINGS ABOUT THE MISSION HAS BEEN THE IMAGERY. CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT THAT? >> WE REALLY NEEDED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD WONDERFULLY DESCRIBED AND BEAUTIFUL SET IMAGES THAT WERE ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE. AND AFTER, YOU KNOW, 450,000 PLUS IMAGES, IT'S SO HARD TO PICK. WE WERE ABLE TO GO BACK IN AND GET 100 BEAUTIFUL IMAGES OR MORE, AND VIDEOS AND ALL KINDS OF -- >> AND THERE'S A LINK. IF YOU WANT TO GET IT, YOU CAN DOWNLOAD IT OFF THE INTERNET. JIM, THANKS FOR JOINING US. THANKS FOR TAKING TIME FOR US. AND I KNOW YOU WANT TO GET BACK INTO THAT CONTROL ROOM. >> ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. >> WELL, WE ARE A LITTLE OVER TEN MINUTES AWAY FROM THE LOSS OF SIGNAL, SO WE WILL BE FOCUSING OUR ATTENTION TO THE CONTROL ROOM VERY SOON NOW. BUT BEFORE WE DO, LET'S TAKE A MOMENT TO CHAT WITH JPL DIRECTOR MIKEIR WATKINS. MIKE, HOW ARE YOU FEELING? >> WELL, FIRST, GOOD MORNING. >> YES, VERY EARLY. >> WE ALWAYS DO THESE EVENTS AT 3:00 IN THE MORNING AND 5:00 IN THE MORNING. >> WHY DO WE DO THAT? >> IT'S PRETTY BITTERSWEET. FOR ME IT'S MORE SWEET THAN BITTER BECAUSE CASSINI HAS BEEN SUCH A FANTASTIC MISSION. ONE OFSS THE IMPORTANT THINGS OF THESE EVENTS IS TO CELEBRATE THE DECADES OF HARD WORK OF THE TEAM THAT DESIGNED, BUILT, AND WORKED ON CASSINI. THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN OPERATING IT, THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO CELEBRATE THAT LEVEL OF DEDICATION, THAT DEVOTION TO WORK ON SOMETHING FOR 10, 20, 30 YEARS, THAT'S SORT OF UNPARALLELED IN HUMAN HISTORY. >> SO HOW DO YOU THINK CASSINI WILL BE REMEMBERED IN THE SCIENCE BOOKS? >> WELL, MOST OF THE SCIENCE BOOKS, MOST OF WHAT WE HAVE IN SCIENCE BOOKS ABOUT SATURN COME FROM CASSINI. IT WILL BE WELL REMEMBERED. IF YOU LOOK AT EVERYTHING YOU KNOW, IT CAME FROM CASSINI ABOUT SATURN. ONE OF THE GREATEST LEGACIES OF A MISSION IS NOT JUST THE SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES THAT IT MAKES AND WHAT YOU LEARN ABOUT IT, BUT THE FACT THAT YOU MAKE DISCOVERIES THAT ARE SO COMPELLING THAT YOU HAVE TO COME BACK. AND THAT'S PART OF WHAT MAKES THE ENDES OF CASSINI SWEET IS THAT THE DISCOVERIES ARE SO GREAT THAT WE HAVE TO GO BACK. WE WILL GO BACK AND LOOK AT ENCELADUS AND TITAN. >> THE WAY MISSIONS ARE, ONE SETS THE FOOTSTEPS FOR THE NEXT MISSION. WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT AFTER CASSINI? >> SO ONE OF THE THINGS WE'VE LEARNED ABOUT THE OUTER SOLAR SYSTEM IS HOW MUCH WATER IS THERE. THE ZONE BETWEEN VENUS AND MARS. WES. REALIZE THERE'S A LOT OF WATER IN THE OUTER SOLAR SYSTEM, EUROPA, ENCELADUS, AND WHAT YOU SEE ABOUT THE PLANETS IS TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE OCEAN WORLDS, TAKE A LOOK AT THE COMPOSITION OF THE ICE. ARE THESE HABITABLE PLACES? ARE THESE PLACES WHERE THERE COULD BE LIFE? WE HERE AT NASA HAVE PLANS TO GO BACK TO MANY OF THE OCEAN WORLDS. THE NEXT ONE IS MULTIPLE FLY BY OF EUROPA, 40 OR 50 TIMES. TAKING A CLOSE LOOK AT THAT OCEAN FROM ABOVE THE ICE AND THE CAUTION OF THE ICE. WE'LL MAKE OUR WAY TO THE OTHER OCEAN WORLDS. >> OCEAN WORLDS ARE THE THINGS TOHI LOOK AT RIGHT NOW, IT SEEMS. >> ABSOLUTELY. THE SEARCH FOR LIFE IS ONE OF THE COMPELLING THREADS FOR NASA. IT'S BEEN A SCIENCE MISSION DIRECTORATE FOR LIFE IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM AND OUTSIDE THE SOLAR SYSTEM. BUT THE OCEAN WORLDS LOOK LIKE AN INCREDIBLY COMPELLING TARGET. >> THANK YOU SO MUCH, MIKE, FOR COMING BY AND JOINING US. I KNOW ALL YOU GUYS WANT TO GET BACK IN THERE IN THE CONTROL ROOM AND BE THERE FOR THE MOMENT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. YOU'RE WATCHING LIVE COVERAGE OF CASSINI'S FINAL HOUR FROM NASA'S JET PROPULSION LABORATORY. IT'S LOCATED IN PASADENA AND MANAGED BY THE CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT OUR LAST HOUR DISPLAY. OUR DISPLAY SHOWS THAT WE ARE JUST OVER SEVEN MINUTES AWAY FROM THE END OF MISSION. AND IT'S NOW TRAVELING ABOUT 75,000 MILES PER HOUR. SO CASSINI IS TRAVELING RAPIDLY TOWARDS THIS END OF MISSION. >> FOR ALL OF THE BEAUTY, THOSE ARE PLACES THAT STARTLE AND AMAZE, BUT NOT A PLACE WHERE YOU CAN LIVE. I THINK IT BRINGS A PERSPECTIVE ON THE EARTH AND WHAT A WONDERFUL PLACE IT IS. >> WE ARE GETTING CLOSE TO TIME, AND TIME WHERE WE SHOULD LOSE THAT SIGNAL. FOLKS ARE WATCHING THE RADIO DISPLAY RIGHT NOW. SO LET'S GO TO TODD AND JOANIE IN MISSION CONTROL. >> HI, SIX MINUTES TO GO UNTIL WE'RE SIX FEET UNDER. IT'S GOING TO BE HARD TO SAY GOOD-BYE HERE. RADIO DISPLAY LOOKS GREAT. MISSION CONTROL, I HEAR A LOT OF BUZZ IN THE ROOM ABOUT THE THRUSTER CYCLES. THE THRUSTERS ARE FIRING. WE'RE STILL OUTSIDE THE ATMOSPHERE, AND THEY'RE KEEPING THAT POINTING ON EARTH AS LONG AS POSSIBLE. ONCE WE HIT THAT ATMOSPHERE, THINGS HAPPEN SUPER FAST. >> WE'RE IN LOW 8 MODE AND WE'RE WAITING FOR THE TRANSITION. >> COPY. THANK YOU. >> FULL PROTECTION. >> GO AHEAD. >> JUST GOING TO GET A QUICK UPDATE ON STATUS. >> NOMINAL. >> THERMAL SYSTEMS. >> THERMAL DEVICES NOMINAL. >> COPY. THANK YOU. >> COPY THANK YOU. >> SYSTEM FULL PROTECTION IS NOMINAL. >> COPY. THANK YOU. >> CDS IS NOMINAL. TWO FRAMES BUFFERED. >> COPY. THANK YOU. >> TELECOM SYSTEMS. >> NOW GOOD, SNT. >> THANK YOU. RADIO? >>O RADIO NOMINAL. FREQUENCY IS STARTING TO INCREASE. >> COPY. THANK YOU. PROPULSION SYSTEMS. >> PRESSURES AND TEMPERATURES ARE NOMINAL, PROPULSION IS NOMINAL. >> THANK YOU. >> MISSION PLANNING SYSTEMS. >> MISSION PLANNING IS NOMINAL. >> THANK YOU. >> EVERYTHING IS NOMINAL. >> COPY. >> THANK YOU, ACE. >> SO WHAT WE JUST HEARD WAS THE ROOM GOING AROUND AND CHECKING ALL THE SUBSYSTEMS. SO FAR ALL OF THE SUBSYSTEMS ARE NOMINAL, ABOUT THREE AND A HALF TO TO MINUTES AWAY. >> WE WENT FROM LOW RATE TO HIGH RATE CONTROL. CAN YOU COMMENT ON THAT? >> SURE, WE HAVE OUR COMPUTER CONTROLLING OUR POINTING HAS DIFFERENT MODES, AND IT'S SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW WHEN WE START HAVING TO FIGHT A LITTLE HARDER. WE HEARD THE COMPUTER ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THEY'RE HAVING TO FIGHT A LITTLE BIT. >> OKAY. THANKS. WE WERE REMARKING EARLIER, IT'S INCREDIBLE THAT THIS ENTIRE SPACECRAFT RUNS ON 600 WATTS OF POWER. >> ABOUT HALF A HAIR DRIER IS ALL WE GOT RIGHT NOW. >> I WANT TO TALK ABOUT HOW LITTLE FUEL WE HAVE RIGHT NOW. UNDER THREE MINUTES NOW. >> WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHEN WE WILL LOSE SIGNAL, SO STAY TUNED. RADIO SIGNAL LOOKS WONDERFUL. S BAND AND X BAND, TWO DIFFERENT RADIO BANDS STILL GETTING THE SIGNAL. >> PUSHING ABOUT 10 DEGREES NORTHES LATITUDE ON SATURN. >> I REMEMBER SEEING WE WERE GOING TO HIT THE ATMOSPHERE ABOUT T77,000 MILES AN HOUR; YOU WERE CLOSE. >>. YEAH. >> TWO MINUTES AND COUNTING. >> WE'RE STARTING TO EXIT. >> THIS IS ACS ONE. WE'RE STILL WAITING. >> LOOKS LIKE THEY'RE STARTING TO LOSE THE BATTLE WITH THE ATMOSPHERE. >> WE JUST HAD THE TRANSITION TO HIGH RATE MODE WITH THIS, WE'RE GOING TO SEE IT MOVE VERY QUICKLY. WE ARE IN THE ATMOSPHERE. >> COPY. THANK YOU. >> ROUGHLY ONE MINUTE TILL LOSS OF SIGNAL. >> GO AHEAD. >> WE CAN CONFIRM. >> COPY. THANK YOU. >> I'M JUST STARTING TO SEE THE THRUSTERS FIRE MORE AND MORE. >> SIGNAL IS STILL HOLDING. 30 SECONDS. >> SYSTEMS LEAD, MISSION PLANNING. >> GO AHEAD, MISSION PLANNING. >> SPACECRAFT JUST CROSSED 10 DEGREES NORTH LATITUDE, 1,000 MILES. >> COPY. THANK YOU. >> ACS ONE. >> GO AHEAD. >> WITH THE ADDITIONAL THRUSTER TIME, WE'RE GOING TO START WRITING. >> COPY. >> WE CROSSED OUR ZERO TIME. >> PROJECT MANAGER, FLIGHT DIRECTOR. >> GO AHEAD. >> OKAY. WE CALL LOSS OF SIGNAL, LOSS OF X BAND AT... CALL LOSS OF SIGNAL AT 115546 FOR THE S BAND. THAT WOULD BE THE END OF THE SPACECRAFT. >> COPY THAT. PROJECT MANAGER ON FSO COORD. MAYBE A TRICKLE OF TELEMETRY LEFT, BUT THE SIGNAL FROM THE SPACECRAFT IS GONE AND WITHIN THE NEXT 45 SECONDS, SO WILL BE THE SPACECRAFT. I HOPE YOU'RE ALL AS DEEPLY PROUD OF THIS AMAZING ACCOMPLISHMENT. CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU ALL. THIS HAS BEEN AN INCREDIBLE MISSION, AN INCREDIBLE SPACECRAFT, AND YOU'RE ALL AN INCREDIBLE TEAM. I'M GOING TO CALL THIS IS END OF MISSION. PROJECT MANAGER, OFF THE NET. [ APPLAUSE ] ♪♪ >> SO JUST A SHORT TIME AGO, JULIE WEBSTER, THE SPACE OPERATIONS TEAM MANAGER AND PROGRAM MANAGER EARL MAYS CALLED IT THE END OF MISSION FOR CASSINI. IT CAME AT ABOUT 4:55, AS PREDICTED. LET'S GO TO BECKMAN AUDITORIUM AND CHECK IN WITH MORGAN CABLE. >> THERE'S GOING TO BE LOTS OF DATA TO ANALYZE FOR YEARS TO COME. JONATHAN, HOW ARE YOU FEELING RIGHT NOW? >> I'M ACTUALLY BREATHING AGAIN. I FEEL SAD, BUT WE FELT SAD THE WHOLE WEEK. WE KNEW THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN. AND CASSINI PERFORMED EXACTLY AS SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO. I BET THERE'S SOME TERRIFIC DATA ON THE GROUND NOW ABOUT SATURN'S ATMOSPHERE. >> I BET YOU'RE RIGHT. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MEMORY OF CASSINI? SHARE A STORY. ANYTHING THAT COMES TO MIND. >> ONE WAS SEEING THE SEAS OF TITAN, AND THE OTHER WAS SEEING THE SURFACE FROM THE PROBE. SITTING WITH A TRAILER IN THE MIDDLE OF GERMANY AND WINTER, THERE WERE THE FIRST PICTURES OF GULLIES ON THE SURFACE OF AN ALIEN WORLD. >> HOW DID THIS BLOW YOUR MIND? >> IT DID. I WAS SCREAMING. SO WAS EVERYONE ELSE. >> I THINK THE MOOD'S BEEN A LITTLE MORE SOMBER NOW, BUT THERE WAS APPLAUSE RIGHT NEAR THE END. THIS IS A CELEBRATION OF CASSINI'S LIFE AND CASSINI'S LEGACY. WE SHOULD TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE FUTURE. WHAT DO YOU SEE NEXT FOR THE SATURN SYSTEM? >> WELL, WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE NEXT IS THAT WE GO BACK THERE. AND THERE'S SO MANY THINGS THAT CASSINI HAS GIVEN US IN TERMS OF A LEGACY TO EXPLORE. ENCELADUS AND THE POSSIBILITY OF LIFE, TITAN AND ITS AMAZING ATMOSPHERE AND LAKES AND SEAS AND HYDROLOGIC CYCLE. SATURN AND THE RINGS AND THE MYSTERY OF WHAT LIES BENEATH THE CLOUDS. THERE'S AN AWFUL LOT THAT CASSINI SAID TO US THAT WE MUST GO BACK AND EXPLORE. >> THERE'S A LOT LEFT TO DO IN THE SATURN SYSTEM AND ELSEWHERE IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM AS WELL. IN TERMS OF FOLLOWING ON CASSINI'S LEGACY AND MENTORING THE NEXT GENERATION, WHAT DO YOU SEE IN TERMS OF NEXT MISSIONS COMING UP, BEING ABLE TO BRING IN THE NEXT GENERATION OF SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS. >> FIRST OF ALL, I'M VERY, VERY CONFIDENT AND OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE NEXT GENERATION, BECAUSE I CAN SEE THAT THE EXPERTS ARE HERE ALREADY. WE WILL BE WELL SERVED IN THE FUTURE. OF COURSE, NASA IS GOING BACK TO EUROPA, WITH THE EUROPA CLIPPER AND THE EUROPEANS ARE DOING JUICE TO THE OTHER MOONS. THERE ARE CONCEPTS FOR GOING BACK TO ENCELADUS AND TITAN AND SATURN. WE DON'T KNOW IF ANY OF THOSE ARE GOING HAPPEN IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, BUT WE'LL SEE. THE IMPORTANT POINT IS THAT CASSINI HAS GOT TO BE A JUMPING OFF POINT TO EVEN MORE EXCITING EXPLORATORY MISSIONS. WE NEED TO GO BACK TO SATURN AND URANUS AND NEAP TUNE. >> I THINK ONE OF THE AMAZING THINGS THAT CASSINI HAS SHOWN US IS THAT IT'S NOT A BORING, COLD PLACE. IT'S DYNAMIC AND SO INCREDIBLY VARIED. THE DIFFERENCES IN THE MOONS OF SATURN ALONE INSPIRES US TO WANT TO GO BACK AND LEARN MORE. >> YEAH, YOU KNOW, 40 YEARS AGO, VOYAGER 1 WAS LAUNCHED. IT WAS VOYAGER 1 AND 2 THAT BROKE UP THE OUTER SYSTEM FOR US, TOLD US THAT THIS WAS NOT A COLD DEAD PLACE. GALILEO CASSINI FOLLOWED ON AND SHOWED US WHAT WERE GOING ON IN THE SYSTEM AND THAT THERE MIGHT BE PLACES FOR LIFE TO EXIST. I HAVE A POEM THAT I WANT TO READ TO YOU AS WELL AT SOME POINT. IS THIS A GOOD TIME? >> I THINK IT'S A GREAT TIME. >> A LOT HAS BEEN SAID ABOUT CASSINI ALREADY, AND THE END OF THE MISSION. BUT I THINK THAT THE BEST I CAN DO TO LEAVE, FOR ME, LEAVE THIS CELEBRATION OF CASSINI'S END IS TO READ A BIT OF A POEM, "ON THE VERGE," A NAUTICAL POEM ABOUT DEATH AND DYING. AND SO, I'M GOING TO READ THE LAST FEW LINES OF IT. AND I HAVE CHANGED ONE OF THE WORDS. AH, BUT HEAR CASSINI'S HEART LEAPS, YEARNING TOWARDS THE BLUE. ROCK NOR SHOAL, FROM THE SHORE THAT HATH NO SHORE, BEYOND WHAT IS SAID IN ALL THE SEA. >> THAT'S BEAUTIFUL. YOU HAD TO DO THAT, DIDN'T YOU? THANK YOU JONATHAN, FOR EVERYTHING. >> MORGAN, THE FUTURE IS IN YOUR HANDS AND THE HANDS OF YOUR GENERATION. AND THIS WAS A MOMENT OF TRANSITION. IT WAS NOT THE END. AND SO LET'S EXPLORE THE SOLAR SYSTEM TOGETHER. >> ALL RIGHT. THAT'S A BEAUTIFUL SENTIMENT. WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION BEING IN THAT CONTROL ROOM? >> I WAS JUST OVERWHELMED WITH UNDERSTANDING HOW PROFESSIONAL THIS TEAM IS. IT WAS CLEARLY EMOTIONAL FOR EVERYONE. THE LUCKY PEANUTS WERE THERE, AND THERE WAS A LOT OF KLEENEX. I SAW IT HAPPENING. IT WENT SO FAST. SOMEBODY WAS SHOUTING OUT, WOW, WE'RE STRUGGLE WITH Z AXIS AND, OH, IT'S GONE. THE WHOLE TEAM WORKED UNTIL THE VERY END. IT WAS ALL ABOUT TEAM WORK. IT SHOWED UNTIL THE LAST SECONDS. >> IT TRULY DID. WHAT SORT OF LEGACY DO YOU THINK THIS MISSION LEAVES? >> I THINK IT REWROTE NOT ONLY WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE OUTER SOLAR SYSTEM, BUT HOW WE THINK AS HUMANS ABOUT OURSELVES. YOU KNOW, THESE WORLDS THAT HAVE FOUND, WE NEVER KNEW WERE THERE, ARE CHANGING HOW WE THINK ABOUT LIFE ITSELF. FOR ME, THAT'S WHY IT'S TRULY A CIVILIZATION SCALE MISSION, ONE THAT WILL STAND OUT AMONG OTHER MISSIONS ANYWHERE. >> AND HOW WILL IT IMPACT FUTURE IDEAS AND FUTURE MISSIONS AS WE PLAN NEW THINGS? >> SOME OF THE HARDEST QUESTIONS TO ANSWER ARE QUESTIONS LIKE IS THERE LIFE OUT THERE? AND THIS MISSION REDEFINES THAT AND WILL AFFECT HOW WE THINK ABOUT THAT QUESTION. WE'RE TACKLING THAT WITH A MULTITUDE OF MISSIONS, LOOKING BACK AT MARS. SO LOOKING AT EUROPA, OUTER OCEANS, AND FINDING THEM ALL OVER OUR GALAXY. THE THOUSANDS OF THE EXO PLANETS AND SATURN-LIKE AND JUPITER-LIKE, AND THINKING ABOUT THEM IN A TOTALLY NEW WAY. >> SO THE THOUGHT IS PEOPLE ARE CAN CLAMOURING TO GO BACK. WILL THAT BE DIFFICULT TO DO? TO BE ABLE TO ENVISION ANOTHER MISSION TO THESE PLACES SOON? >> IT'S ALWAYS VERY DIFFICULT TO DO, BECAUSE THESE MACHINES ARE SO HARD. TO GO BACK AND TAKE THE NEXT STEP ON ENCELADUS, WE WANT TO REALLY THINK WHAT THAT WOULD TAKE THERE'S GREAT IDEAS ALREADY OUT THERE, AND PERHAPS SOME OF THESE IDEAS WILL COME TO FRUITION RELATIVELY EARLY, I DON'T KNOW. BUT WE WANT TO REALLY START THINKING AND TALKING ABOUT THIS. AND THE SCIENCE COMMUNITY OVERALL, I WOULD ENCOURAGE THEM TO REALLY START MAKING PLANS SO WE CAN CREATE A CONSENSUS AS TO WHAT DIRECTION WE WANT TO GO IN. YES, WE WANT TO REALLY GO BACK. THIS IS SUCH A WONDERFUL SYSTEM. WE DON'T WANT TO LEAVE IT ALONE. >> AND SUCH A BEAUTIFUL ONE THAT HAS AFFECTED SO MANY PEOPLE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING THIS MOMENT WITH US. >> THIS WAS A MULTINATIONAL TEAM, AND IN A FEW MOMENTS, WE WILL BE SPEAKING TO MEMBERS OF OUR PARTNER NATIONS ABOUT THEIR FEELINGS ABOUT THIS MISSION. ♪♪ >> AS WE TOLD YOU EARLIER, THIS WAS A MULTINATIONAL ENDEAVOR FROM THE VERY, VERY START, A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN NASA, THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY, AND THE ITALIAN SPACE AGENCY THIS IS AN EQUALLY PROUD MOMENT FOR ALL INVOLVED. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING. WAS THIS SOMETHING THAT YOU DECIDED YOU WOULDN'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD? >> OF COURSE WE COULDN'T MISS IT, BECAUSE WE KNEW THIS MOMENT WAS GOING TO COME. IT'S A LITTLE BIT SAD, BECAUSE WE WANTED TO DELAY IT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND GET AS MUCH SCIENCE AS POSSIBLE, BUT WE KNEW IT WAS COMING. IN THAT SENSE IT WAS SAD, BUT ALSO VERY NICE TO SEE THAT WE HAVE OPENED THE POSSIBILITY FOR THE FUTURE SCIENCE, ALSO, AND FOR THE SCIENTISTS WHO ARE WORKING ON THE DATA THAT CASSINI HAS COLLECTED. AND ALSO AS AN EXAMPLE, I THINK WE HAVE TO BUILD ON THIS COOPERATION BETWEEN U.S. AND EUROPE IN AMBITIOUS MISSIONS LIKE THIS. WE ARE VERY PROUD OF HAVING WORKED TOGETHER, AND WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CONTINUE THIS WAY, BECAUSE TOGETHER WE CAN DO MUCH BETTER. >> AND ROBERTO, YOUR FEELINGS TO BE A PART OF THIS? >> IT'S A VERY HISTORICAL MOMENT, AND TO BE A PART OF THAT IS EMOTIONALLY INTENSE. I KNOW THE STORY OF MY FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES, AND CASSINI DEMONSTRATED WE CAN DO THAT. WE CAN CREATE A CONDITION FOR THE INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION AND MISSION. LEARNING A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF THINGS FOR THE FUTURE IS ONE GIGANTIC STEP TOWARDS THE FUTURE. MAYBE WE CAN HOPE THIS IS NOT THE LAST ONE, BUT ONLY THE FIRST ONE. >> WERE YOU SURPRISED AT HOW LONG THIS MISSION HAS LASTED? AND THE AMOUNT OF INFORMATION AND SCIENCE THAT IT HAS BROUGHT BACK? >> NOT SO MUCH THE LENGTH. I THINK WE ALL DREAMT ABOUT IT, BUT THE DISCOVERIES AND THE -- WHAT WE HAVE FOUND IN THE CASSINI -- IN THE SATURN SYSTEM IS SIMPLY AMAZING. WE WERE SURPRISED BY THAT. >> AND WORKING ON TITAN. I MEAN, WHAT WAS THE HIGH POINTS FOR YOU? >> WELL, FOR ME, HOIGANS WAS GETTING TO TITAN. WE LANDED THERE IN 2005. THIS IS WHAT WE THOUGHT THAT THIS BODIES OUT OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM WHERE THE FULL LIFE COULD APPEAR. AND WE WANTED TO ANALYZE THAT. BUT THEN WE FOUND THAT WE COULD EVEN LAND. WE DIDN'T KNOW HOW THE SURFACE WAS. WE DIDN'T KNOW IF IT WAS GOING TO SINK OR LAND OR WHATEVER. >> AND IT WAS ALIVE FOR SOMETIME WHEN IT LANDED. >> AND THAT WAS AMAZING. ALSO WE COULD SEE FIRST THIS WAS THE FURTHEST AWAY LANDING EVER OF A HUMAN-MADE PROBE. BUT ALSO WE HAVE A LANDSCAPE, TOTALLY UNEXPECTED, OF TITAN. SOMETHING SIMILAR TO EARTH, ACTUALLY. WE HAVE A TOTALLY DIFFERENT COMPOSITION, SIGNS OF METHANE RATHER THAN WATER. >> BUT LOOKING AT IT, IT DOES LOOK VERY, VERY FAMILIAR. AND LET'S TALK ABOUT YOUR ROLE AND THE HIGH GAIN ANTENNA. SO OFTEN THE PROJECT RELIED ON THE HIGH GAIN ANTENNA AS PROTECTION FOR THE REST OF THE SPACECRAFT. WAS THAT SOMETHING THAT WAS PLANNED, AND YOU THOUGHT THIS IS THE WAY TO USE THE ANTENNA? >> THE ANTENNA IS AMAZING. ITE IT'S THE MOST SOPHISTICATED ANTENNA, OPERATING FOR 20 YEARS ALMOST CONTINUALLY. IT WAS DESIGNED TO BE A PASSIVE PROTECTION SYSTEM. SHIELDING THE SATELLITE FROM THE INTENSE SOLAR RADIATION. AND GETTING INTO THE SATURN ENVIRONMENT, IT WAS SHIELDING AGAIN, MEASURING BY THE VIBRATION OF THE ANTENNA ITSELF THE AMOUNT OF MICROWAVES, AND USE THAT AS PROTECTION IN THE SPACE BETWEEN THE SATURN PLANET, WHICH WAS UNKNOWN, TOTALLY UNKNOWN. I THINK THIS IS AMAZING, SUCH A SOPHISTICATED INSTRUMENT AS A SHIELD. >> AND CASSINI WAS SUCH A WELL-MADE MACHINE, AND SERVED SO WELL. I THINK IN ITS ENTIRE FLIGHT, IT WAS -- IT HAD ONLY SAVED THREE TIMES. COULD NOT HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT BOTH OF YOUR ORGANIZATIONS. AND WE ARE SO PLEASED THAT YOU ARE HERE AND JOINING US. >> THESE ARE THE KIND OF STORIES ABOUT SPACE MISSIONS THAT SHOULD BE TOLD, BECAUSE THE FACT THAT IT WAS SMOOTH AND PERFECTLY DESIGNED WITHOUT TROUBLE IS A TREMENDOUS GIANT BOND THAT SHOULD BE KNOWN. >> THANK YOU AGAIN FOR COMING OUT AND BEING WITH US ON THIS VERY, VERY SPECIAL DAY. >> THANK YOU. >> ALL RIGHT. ♪♪ >> THAT VIDEO WAS CALLED CASSINI INSPIRES, MADE UP OF IMAGES THAT THE PUBLIC SENT IN USING SOME OF CASSINI'S RAW IMAGES AS WELL AS YOUR OWN ARTWORK. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THAT WRAPS IT UP FROM HERE, A BITTERSWEET DAY FOR THE CASSINI TEAM, BUT WE CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL PROUD OF THE FANTASTIC PEOPLE THAT MADE THESE ACCOMPLISHMENTS POSSIBLE. THESE LAST 20 YEARS. ABOUT AN HOUR FROM NOW AT 6:30 A.M. PACIFIC, 9:30 A.M. EASTERN, THERE WILL BE A NEWS BRIEFING. IT WILL BE LIVE ON NASA TV AND ALSO STREAMED. FIR MORE INFORMATION, YOU CAN CHECK OUT THE URLs YOU SEE ON THE SCREEN. JIM GREEN TOLD YOU ABOUT THE E BOOKS, SOME OF THE MOST MEMORABLE GIFTS FROM CASSINI ARE THOSE SPECTACULAR IMAGES. AN E BOOK HAS BEEN MADE, AND YOU CAN FIND IT BY GOING TO THAT LINK YOU SEE ON THE SCREEN. BEFORE WE GO, A PARTING LOOK AT THE DSN NOW IMAGE, THE DISPLAY YOU SEE THERE. IT'S NOW DARK AND COMMUNICATION WITH THE SPACECRAFT IS NOW SILENT. CASSINI IS NO MORE, BUT WHAT A LEGACY IT LEAVES BEHIND.
