Cassini spacecraft bids farewell after 13 years exploring Saturn

Cassini heads into Saturn's atmosphere, burning up after a hugely successful mission examining Saturn's rings, moons, atmosphere and interior. The spacecraft, which was launched in 1997, has spent the last 13 years orbiting Saturn and its environment. On 15 September 2017, it will turn towards the planet and burn up in the atmosphere. You almost feel like the instrument and the spacecraft are part of the family. Professor Michele Dougherty As it enters this final phase, it will send back as much data as it can back to Earth, before the signal is lost as the spacecraft breaks up. The loss of signal is expected to reach Earth around 13:00 British Summer Time, and NASA TV will be streaming the event live from mission control. You can also follow along on Twitter with the hashtag #GrandFinale.