Cassini beginsr its 'death dive' into Saturn's rings

NASA's Cassini spacecraft is currently plunging into the gap between Saturn and its rings, a pioneering journey that could offer an unprecedented view of the planet. The first of the spaceship's 22 deep dives between Saturn and its innermost ring begun today at 10am BST (5am ET). Communications with the spacecraft have gone dark during the dive and will remain so for about a day afterwards while it makes scientific observations of the planet. Today Cassini has begun the first of 22 'Grand Finale Orbits' through an unexplored gap before taking its final plunge into the planet. This graphic shows these orbits alongside the Ring-Grazing orbits the craft has undergone over the past 13 years.