Monday, September 11: Monthly Membership Meeting

James Guilford , , , , , ,
Image: Artist's concept of Cassini spacecraft at Saturn. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
In this still from the short film Cassini’s Grand Finale, the spacecraft is shown diving between Saturn and the planet’s innermost ring. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The Cuyahoga Astronomical Association (CAA) will host its monthly meeting at 7:30 PM, Monday, September 11 in the Cleveland Metroparks’ Rocky River Nature Center, North Olmsted. The speaker will be Jay Reynolds who will discuss NASA’s Cassini Mission to Saturn and its finale, set to occur September 15. The program is free and open to the public, no reservations required.

The Cassini spacecraft will make its final approach to the giant planet Saturn this Friday, ending an extremely productive seven-year mission. This encounter will be like no other. This time, Cassini will dive into the planet’s atmosphere, sending science data for as long as its small thrusters can keep the spacecraft’s antenna pointed at Earth. Soon after, Cassini will burn up and disintegrate like a meteor.

In addition to being a research astronomer who teaches at Cleveland State University, Reynolds is CAA’s observatory director. He frequently appears on Cleveland television, hosting a show about astronomy on WKYC, Channel 3.

Following the program, the club’s monthly membership meeting will convene.