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Atmospheric refraction affects to various degrees exoplanet transit, lunar eclipse, as well as stellar occultation observations. Exoplanet retrieval algorithms often use analytical expressions for the column abundance along a ray traversing…
The potential detection of phosphine in the atmosphere of Venus has reignited interest in the possibility of life aloft in this environment. If the cloud decks of Venus are indeed an abode of life, it should reside in the "habitable zone"…
Titan has a climate system with similarities to Earth, including the presence of a thick atmosphere made up of several atmospheric layers. As on Earth, Titan's climate is influenced by several factors: the gaseous species making up the…
I report the results of a new set of calculations for the gravitational contraction of the proto-solar cloud to quantify the idea that Titan may be a captured moon of Saturn (Prentice 1981, 1984). It is proposed that Titan initially…
Since the beginning of robotic interplanetary exploration nearly six decades ago, successful atmospheric entry has been accomplished at Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Titan. More entry probe missions are planned to Venus, Titan, and…
Transportation missions in aerospace are limited to the capability of each aerospace robot and the properties of the target transported object, such as mass, inertia, and grasping locations. We present a novel decentralized adaptive…
Some of the major discoveries of the recent Cassini-Huygens mission have put Titan and Enceladus firmly on the Solar System map. The mission has revolutionised our view of Solar System satellites, arguably matching their scientific…
Saturn's moon Titan exhibits remarkable parallels to the Earth in many geophysical and geological processes not found elsewhere in the solar system at the present day. These include a nitrogen atmosphere with a condensible gas - methane -…
Titan, with its thick and hazy atmosphere, is a key world in our solar system for understanding light scattering processes. NASA's Cassini mission monitored Titan between 2004 and 2017, where the derived dataset includes a large number of…
The Cassini-Huygens mission measured the chemical abundances of the major components of Titan's atmosphere, and analyses of the data revealed several as-yet unexplained anomalies in the methane and hydrogen profiles. We model the…
This paper presents innovative solutions to critical challenges in planetary and deep-space exploration electronics. We synthesize findings across diverse mission profiles, highlighting advances in: (1) MARTIAN positioning systems with…
This study presents a 13 years survey of haze UV extinction profiles, monitoring the temporal evolution of the detached haze layer (DHL) in Titan's upper atmosphere (350-600 km). As reported by West et al. 2011 (GRL vol.38, L06204) at the…
In recent years, understanding asteroids has shifted from light worlds to geological worlds by exploring modern spacecraft and advanced radar and telescopic surveys. However, flyby in 2029 will be an opportunity to conduct an internal…
We use solar occultations observed by the Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer aboard the Cassini Spacecraft to extract the 1 to 5 micron transmission spectrum of Saturn, as if it were a transiting exoplanet. We detect absorption from…
The Atmospheric Drag, Occultation 'N' Ionospheric Scintillation mission (ADONIS) studies the dynamics of the terrestrial thermosphere and ionosphere in dependency of solar events over a full solar cycle in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). The…
Jupiter's moon Io is a highly compelling target for future exploration that offers critical insight into tidal dissipation processes and the geology of high heat flux worlds, including primitive planetary bodies, such as the early Earth,…
Understanding Titan's planetary boundary layer (PBL)-the lowest region of the atmosphere influenced by surface conditions-remains challenging due to Titan's thick atmosphere and limited observations. Previous modeling studies have produced…
The atmospheres of Mars and Titan are loaded with aerosols that impact remote sensing observations of their surface. Here we present the algorithm and the first applications of a radiative transfer model in spherical geometry designed for…
It is demonstrated that the development of a nuclear fusion rocket engine based on a D $-$ $^{3}$He (Deterium-Helium 3) technology will allow to travel in the solar system and beyond. The Direct Fusion Drive (DFD) is the D $-$…
After 9 years in the Saturn system, the Cassini spacecraft finally observed Titan in the supersonic solar wind. These unique observations reveal that Titan interaction with the solar wind is in many ways similar to un-magnetized planets…