MMII-SOTP/Cass_r_c_o_TPMBK (ca. 1988, JPL photo no. P33300)
“Artist's concept from 1988 of the Mariner Mark II Cassini Saturn orbiter releasing the Huygens probe above Titan's orange clouds."
“Initially Cassini was meant to be one of the first Mariner Mark II spacecraft, along with the Comet Rendezvous/Asteroid Flyby (CRAF) spacecraft. Mariner Mark II was intended to be a standardized (and thus inexpensive) spacecraft bus for advanced interplanetary missions. Congress scrapped CRAF in 1992 after it went over budget and diverted its remaining funds to Cassini, marking the end of the Mariner Mark II cost-cutting experiment.”
All above per David S. F. Portree’s always immensely readable, informative & enlightening content, at:
Specifically:
Credit: “No Shortage of Dreams: Touring Titan By Blimp & Buoy (1983)”/David S. F. Portree
And/or:
"SATURN ORBITER/TITAN PROBE (SOTP) (PREDECESSOR OF CASSINI-HUYGENS):
Cassini-Huygens planning status in 1988, at that time called the “Saturn Orbiter/Titan Probe (SOTP)”. The spacecraft was originally slated to have a scan platform, however in the end Cassini did not end up with one—a significant drawback to imaging during close flybys."
Above per NASA/JPL-Caltech, at:
www.planetary.org/space-images/20140212_cassini-huygens_p...
Specifically:
planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/20140212_C...
Credit: The Planetary Society website
Finally, and with all due respect to the aforementioned/cited, my favorite, which apparently was originally per NASA:
"Artist's impression circa 1988 of Cassini with its (as yet-unnamed) Titan probe. The Cassini orbiter spacecraft portrayed here has a separate probe relay antenna, teardrop fuel tanks, a single main rocket engine and scan platforms for instruments. All these details changed as the mission evolved towards launch in 1997."
Above, with the image, at:
www.techbooks.cz/fotky8895/fotos/_vyrp12_9923978178521111...
Credit: Techbooks.cz website and "NASA/ESA/ASI Cassini-Huygens: 1997-2017 (Cassini orbiter, Huygens probe and future exploration concepts): Owners' Workshop Manual), by Haynes Publishing, UK/Ralph Lorenz
Most importantly, by whose hand??? 😉
Ken Hodges? Although it just doesn't look like his style to me. Idk.
MMII-SOTP/Cass_r_c_o_TPMBK (ca. 1988, JPL photo no. P33300)
“Artist's concept from 1988 of the Mariner Mark II Cassini Saturn orbiter releasing the Huygens probe above Titan's orange clouds."
“Initially Cassini was meant to be one of the first Mariner Mark II spacecraft, along with the Comet Rendezvous/Asteroid Flyby (CRAF) spacecraft. Mariner Mark II was intended to be a standardized (and thus inexpensive) spacecraft bus for advanced interplanetary missions. Congress scrapped CRAF in 1992 after it went over budget and diverted its remaining funds to Cassini, marking the end of the Mariner Mark II cost-cutting experiment.”
All above per David S. F. Portree’s always immensely readable, informative & enlightening content, at:
Specifically:
Credit: “No Shortage of Dreams: Touring Titan By Blimp & Buoy (1983)”/David S. F. Portree
And/or:
"SATURN ORBITER/TITAN PROBE (SOTP) (PREDECESSOR OF CASSINI-HUYGENS):
Cassini-Huygens planning status in 1988, at that time called the “Saturn Orbiter/Titan Probe (SOTP)”. The spacecraft was originally slated to have a scan platform, however in the end Cassini did not end up with one—a significant drawback to imaging during close flybys."
Above per NASA/JPL-Caltech, at:
www.planetary.org/space-images/20140212_cassini-huygens_p...
Specifically:
planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/20140212_C...
Credit: The Planetary Society website
Finally, and with all due respect to the aforementioned/cited, my favorite, which apparently was originally per NASA:
"Artist's impression circa 1988 of Cassini with its (as yet-unnamed) Titan probe. The Cassini orbiter spacecraft portrayed here has a separate probe relay antenna, teardrop fuel tanks, a single main rocket engine and scan platforms for instruments. All these details changed as the mission evolved towards launch in 1997."
Above, with the image, at:
www.techbooks.cz/fotky8895/fotos/_vyrp12_9923978178521111...
Credit: Techbooks.cz website and "NASA/ESA/ASI Cassini-Huygens: 1997-2017 (Cassini orbiter, Huygens probe and future exploration concepts): Owners' Workshop Manual), by Haynes Publishing, UK/Ralph Lorenz
Most importantly, by whose hand??? 😉
Ken Hodges? Although it just doesn't look like his style to me. Idk.