Pioneer 11

The probe Pioneer 11 was launched approximately a year after his/her big sister Pioneer 10 the April 5th 1973 by the rocket Atlas/Centaur /TE364-4. It had had the role of flying over and of photographing Jupiter. Then, it had to benefit from the gravitational assistance of the latter in order to join Saturn before leaving the Solar system definitively.

Just like Pioneer 10, Pioneer 11 carried on its board a plate intended for possible extraterrestrial lives and representing a man and a woman, the position of the Earth and Sun in the galaxy as well as a diagram of a Atome of Hydrogène.

After having exceeded the belt of asteroids, the engines of the probe were ignited thereafter to increase its speed to 43.000 km of the top of the vapor cloud of Jupiter. During its way towards giant planet like at the time of its overflight of this one, Pioneer 11 studied in particular the solar wind, the radiations cosmic, the planetary and interplanetary magnetic fields, the atmosphere and the surface of Jupiter as well as some of its satellites. The December 2nd 1974, Pioneer 11 took in particular photographs of the Large Red Spot of planet, made the first observations of the polar regions and determined the mass of its satellite Callisto. The attraction of giant planet accelerated Pioneer 11 up to 173.000 km/h to deviate it towards Saturn. The transmitted photographs completely modified the perception of the scientists (simply because of the quantity of data made available) and of the general public (by the quality of the images which broke brutally with the fuzzy images and approximate which was available up to that point).

The probe thus reached Saturn on September 1st 1979, passing to 22.000 km of the top clouds, took the first photographs of close to planet, discovered two satellites and a ring hitherto a41dernier $c-b1, e,10 $c-b26 ce $c-b16 $c-b43, bn,84 unknown, studied the magnetosphere saturnienne and establishes that the temperature on the satellite Titan was probably too cold to allow the development of any form of life, in spite of the presence of methane and organic molecules.

Pioneer 11 carried on then its road towards the borders of the solar system, while retransmettant data on the cosmic radiations or the solar wind. The September 30th 1995, the mission was officially stopped because of the lack of energy available on board probe, an energy necessary to make it possible to continue the observations. The last contact with Pioneer 11 occurred in November 1995. Since then, it carries on its road towards the outside of the solar system, in direction of the Constellation of the Eagle. It will pass near a star of this constellation in 4 million years.

See too

Anomaly Pioneer

Simple: Pioneer 11

Random links:

Pioneer 11

See too

Related article