Science Briefs  Cassini Encounters Titan  The Cassini/Huygens
mission to Saturn is one of the most exciting planetary
exploration projects ever undertaken. Launched in 1997, Cassini
went into Saturn orbit on June 30, 2004, beginning its four-year
tour of the planet's complex systems of rings, moons, radiation
belts, and atmospheres. The major highlight will take place on
Jan. 14, 2005, when the Huygens probe will drop into the smoggy
atmosphere of Saturn's mysterious moon Titan, conducting a two-
and-a-half hour survey of its cryogenic environment. Seeking to
understand Titan's atmosphere, GISS scientists Anthony Del Genio
and Michael Allison are involved in three of Cassini/Huygens
instrument teams: the Imaging Science Subsystem and Cassini
Science Radar Team on the orbiter and the Doppler Wind
Experiment on the Huygens probe.  Titan's atmosphere is mostly
molecular nitrogen, as is Earth's, but it is about 50% thicker.
The surface is hidden by a stratospheric haze (see Fig. 1),
believed to form when sunlight