Cassini’s Ring-Grazing and Grand Finale Orbits

This short animation created by Cassini's mission planning team shows the missions final orbits - starting with the Ring-Grazing orbits in November 2016 and transitioning to the Grand Finale orbits in 2017. The 22 Grand Finale orbits take the spacecraft into previously unexplored space between Saturn and its innermost ring. This mission ends on Sept. 15, 2017 when Cassini plunges into Saturn's atmosphere.