The Cassini spacecraft and Huygens probe begin their seven-year journey to the ringed planet on a Titan/Centaur rocket.

The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft is launched on its seven-year journey to Saturn from Cape Canaveral in Florida using a Titan/Centaur rocket. The orbiter will spend four years studying the planet's system. Saturn's rings and many moons are of great interest to scientists. Its biggest moon, Titan, is the only moon in the solar system with its own atmosphere.

Seventeen nations contributed to building the craft, and more than 250 scientists worldwide will study the data it collects. The Cassini orbiter and the Huygens probe are equipped with sophisticated instruments and cameras able to collect images in all sorts of atmospheric and light conditions.