[X] My Assistant

[Guest_AlexBlackwell_*]

An excerpt from Emily Lakdawalla's blog entry today ("Pretty Cassini pictures from near the ring plane"):

"When the Cassini team plans observations done with any of the instruments, there's usually a lettered code assigned to the observation that gives a brief description of the purpose of the observation....my favorite one of those codes has to be 'KODAKMMT,' which is clearly short for 'Kodak Moment' -- in other words, the purpose of the observation is to take a photo for no other particular reason than it is going to be pretty. Cassini has a lot of science goals to accomplish at Saturn but I am very happy that they are taking just a few data bits to occasionally snap pictures, like the Tethys and Saturn one above, that are just plain pretty!"

I'll only add that Cassini has several "Kodak Moments" planned for the tour. In fact, as Cassini Mission Planning defines them: "These images are *candidate* opportunities for aesthetically pleasing images to be taken. Navigation may consider replacing one OPNAV with one of these images, but only if navigation margin and workforce allow. It is expected that on average, about one image per sequence may be implemented, totaling a few dozen over the tour."

The one planned for the S17 sequence is OK, I guess. It's a nearly edge-on shot of the rings with Mimas, Calypso, and Pan in the frame. S18 has two, one of which has Titan nearly occultating Enceladus. At any rate, expect some dazzling shots of the rings later in the tour, when Cassini is in a high inclination orbit.