c-upi

DARMSTADT, Germany, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- European Space Agency
officials said they are receiving data from the Huygens probe
indicating its mission to land on Titan was successful.
Mission controllers in Germany received the first signals
from the probe, which are being relayed by NASA's Cassini
spacecraft, at about 10:24 a.m. ET, indicating the landing has been
successful. They said Cassini was expected to send additional data
collected by the probe over several more hours Friday. They expect
to release images from the landing starting at about 3 p.m. Friday
ET.
Cassini collected the data signal during its flyby of Titan
as it trailed Huygens, which had been attached to Cassini since its
launch in 1997, but separated from Cassini on Christmas Day and
headed toward Titan for its Jan. 14 rendezvous.
Communications between Huygens and Cassini will last only
for a few hours, after which the spacecraft will pass behind Titan
and no longer will be able to receive signals from Huygens.
Cassini's orbit will carry it to a return to Titan in 31 days.
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