Spectacular end is nigh for Cassini space probe
Last week, the US space probe Cassini survived an encounter of the very closest - and riskiest - kind. In response to signals that had been transmitted to it across several hundred millions of miles of space, it swooped through a tiny gap between Saturn and its rings, then skimmed over the planet's upper atmosphere. Now the little spaceship is beaming back information about the giant, ringed world from the very closest of viewpoints.
The achievement was remarkable - for this fly-by represents just one of a host of triumphs for Cassini, though in this case its manoeuvre did have a particular significance. It will be the spacecraft's swan song. Having brought a stunning new awareness of Saturn and its system of moons, including observations suggesting that at least two could harbour life, the US space agency Nasa is now preparing to bring an end to Cassini as the spacecraft's reserves of fuel run out.
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