Cassini: The Spacecraft That Chose to Die

On 15 September 2017, mission control at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory heard four words: "We have loss of signal." Cassini still worked. The people who built it sent it into Saturn on purpose. This is the story of why. It covers the 616,400 signatures that flew with Cassini, the ocean it found under the ice of Enceladus, and the day it turned around to photograph Earth. It ends with the 22 dives between Saturn and its rings, and the morning the team watched a spacecraft that was already gone. The mission-control audio is real NASA/JPL archive audio from 15 September 2017. Cassini is a 3D model, the space scenes are SpaceEngine renders, and every photograph shown as Cassini's is a real NASA image. CHAPTERS 0:00 We have loss of signal 0:25 616,400 names 1:11 Arriving at Saturn 2:15 An ocean on Enceladus 2:54 The problem 3:21 The Day the Earth Smiled 3:51 The decision 4:21 The Grand Finale 5:09 The real last photo 5:30 The final morning 6:10 Loss of signal 6:44 The names inside Saturn SOURCES Final moments in Cassini mission control (NASA/JPL): https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/videos/final... Signatures from Earth board spacecraft to Saturn (JPL, 1997): https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/signatu... Cassini's Family Takes the Plunge (NASA): https://science.nasa.gov/missions/cas... Cassini team reactions (Space.com): https://space.com/38169-cassini-satur... Cassini's real final image, PIA21895 (NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute) Music: Scott Buckley (CC BY 4.0). Tracks: Shadows and Dust, Uprising, Age of Wonder, Penumbra, Aphelion, At the End of All Things. https://www.scottbuckley.com.au Nebulo, cinematic documentaries of the universe. Subscribe for new films:    / @nebulo.spacehd   #Cassini #Saturn #NASA #Space #Enceladus