There’s nothing in this world like being the first to discover some fundamental fact of nature. It’s profoundly satisfying. Carolyn Porco Read Quote
By the time I finished high school, I knew I wanted to become an astronomer. By the time I finished college, I knew I wanted to be part of the American space program. And that’s exactly what I did. Carolyn Porco Read Quote
I was drawn to astronomy by a teenage existential quest. Around 13, I was deep into wondering about the meaning of life and what I was doing here. I turned to religion, but that did nothing for me. I got to wondering where was here. So, I began studying astronomy and became enthralled by what I learned. Carolyn Porco Read Quote
It would be impossible in a few words to describe all that we’ve found with Cassini. No mission has ever gone as deep for as long on a planetary system as rich as Saturn’s. Carolyn Porco Read Quote
As far as I’m concerned, Enceladus has become the go-to place in our solar system for issues bearing on extraterrestrial life. It’s a great place to examine extraterrestrial organic chemistry that is water-based and, therefore, like biotic chemistry on Earth. Carolyn Porco Read Quote
In any ‘big science’ enterprise, like planetary exploration, where you must work in big teams of similarly driven people, it is important also to know how to work alongside others even when they may be your fiercest competitors. Carolyn Porco Read Quote
Titan is the one place in our solar system whose geographical and atmospheric diversity and complexity are rivaled only by the Earth’s. It’s very Earth-like, but it’s also very different, which means we have a lot to learn as well as a prayer of understanding what we find. Carolyn Porco Read Quote
The first real Cassini image that brought tears to my eyes was an image of Jupiter. I didn’t expect it to look so detailed. Carolyn Porco Read Quote