| Huygens Summary Timeline | |||
| This is a more-or-less arbitrary collection of events during the Huygens mission that are of scientific and/or engineering interest. Compiled by R. D. Lorenz drawing on the work of many. | |||
| The official UTC value of T0 is 2005-014T09:10:20.828 . | |||
| T-T0 | Altitude (km) | Event | Ref |
| -16143 | Probe power-on | 1 | |
| -8396 | Probe support avionics power-on | 1 | |
| -348 | Arrival at interface altitude (1,270 km) | 3 | |
| -6.375 | S0 (deceleration falls below 10 m/s2) | 3 | |
| 0 | t0 (start of the descent sequence) | 1 | |
| 1.4 | Pilot Chute Inflates | 3 | |
| 2.5 | Back Cover Release, Deploy Main | 3 | |
| 4.9 | Main Parachute inflates | 3 | |
| 32.5 | Heat shield separation | 3 | |
| 45 | Transmitter ON | 1 | |
| 50 | GCMS inlet cap jettison | 1 | |
| 58 | GCMS outlet cap jettison | 1 | |
| 62 | HASI boom deployment (latest) | 1 | |
| 66 | DISR cover jettison | 1 | |
| 90 | 145 | ACP inlet cap jettison | 1 |
| 143.6 | Data Transmission Begins | 3 | |
| ~528 | 126 | Spin Rate = 0, spin reverses | 9,5 |
| 900 | 111 | Main Chute Release/Stabilizer Deploy | 1 |
| 903 | Stabilizer inflated | 3 | |
| 1050 | Anomalous HASI PWA data | 4 | |
| 1242 | Anomalous HASI PWA data | 4 | |
| 1249 | 90 | Maximum Spin Rate = -9.56rpm | 9,5 |
| 1440 | ACP Pump On. SSP API data degraded | 5 | |
| ~1500 | ~76 | Minimum in Zonal Wind Speed Profile | 13 |
| ~1554 | GCMS Ion Source 5 Anomaly | 5,6 | |
| 1974 | Radar altimeter power-on | 3 | |
| ~2000 | 62 | Peak in HASI RP Electron Density | 2 |
| ~2700 | 45 | Radar Altimeter B locks (false) on surface | 11 |
| 3440 | ACP Pump off | 5 | |
| ~3450 | 36 | Radar Altimeter A locks (false) on surface | 11 |
| ~4650 | ACP Pump On. | 5 | |
| 5150 | 21 | DISR detects faint cloud layer | 14 |
| ~5200 | 20 | Radar altimeter B locks correctly | 11 |
| 5310 | ACP Pump Off | 5 | |
| ~6000 | 15 | Radar Altimeter A locks correctly | 11 |
| ~6685 | 11.5 | SSP API-V begins to get pulses | 12 |
| 6720 | 10.9 | DISR detects faint cloud layer | 14 |
| ~7500 | 7 | Probe turns to move WNW | 8 |
| ~8650 | 1 | Probe begins to move to SW | 8 |
| 8745 | DISR surface lamp on | 1 | |
| 8842 | 0.14 | Radar altimeters lost lock | 11 |
| 8850 | 0.1 | SSP Echo Sounder Detects Surface | 10 |
| 8870 | 0 | Surface impact | 1 |
| ~8874 | Dust cloud dies away | 7 | |
| ~8874-8879 | Bouncing/Rocking motion of probe dies away | 7 | |
| 8887 | HASI temperatures begin slow increase | 5 | |
| 9052 | HASI Temperatures begin fluctuating | 5 | |
| 9103 | SSP API-V Pulses resume | 5 | |
| 9532 | HASI Temperatures drop ~0.2K | 5 | |
| 9550 | Discontinuity in HASI PWA Permittivity Data | 2 | |
| 10125 | SSP API-V Pulses cease | 5 | |
| 10128 | HASI Temperatures jump ~0.15K | 5 | |
| ~10400 | GCMS C2H6 level rises | 6 | |
| 10423 | Possible Dewdrop detected by DISR Image 897 | 5,8 | |
| 10787 | Last HASI Temperature | 5 | |
| ~11000 | GCMS CO2 and C2H2 levels rising | 6 | |
| 13203 | End of Cassini–probe link | 1 | |
| 16031 | Probe support avionics power-off | 1 | |
| 20559 | Last signal detection by Earth-based radio | 1 | |
| ~20700 | Estimated Battery Depletion ~T0+5.5-6hrs | 11 | |
| Ref | |||
| 1 | Lebreton et al., Nature 438, 2005, 758-764 | ||
| 2 | Grard et al., PSS 54, 2006, 1124-1136 | ||
| 3 | Kazeminejad et al., PSS 55, 2007, 1845-1876 | ||
| 4 | Hamelin et al., PSS 55, 2007, 1964-1977 | ||
| 5 | Lorenz Analysis of PDS archive | ||
| 6 | Niemann et al 2011 | ||
| 7 | Schroeder et al., PSS 73, 2012, 327-340 | ||
| 8 | Karkoschka et al., PSS 55, 2007, 1896-1935 | ||
| 9 | Sarlette, 2005 | ||
| 10 | Zarnecki et al., Nature 438, 2005, 792-795 | ||
| 11 | Couzin 2005 | ||
| 12 | Leese et al., PPS 70, 2012. 28-45 | ||
| 13 | Bird et al., Nature 438, 2005, 800-802 | ||
| 14 | Karkoschka et al., Icarus 199, 2009. 442-448 | ||