Hi there,

Immigration raids are spreading across the country. The agencies meant to protect public health are being dismantled from within. Public broadcasting is being defunded... Today, Democracy Now!'s independent reporting is more important than ever. Because we never accept corporate or government funding, we rely on viewers, listeners and readers like you to sustain our work. Can you start a monthly donation? Monthly donors represent more than 20 percent of our annual revenue. Every dollar makes a difference. Thank you so much.

Democracy Now!
Amy Goodman

Non-commercial news needs your support.

We rely on contributions from you, our viewers and listeners to do our work. If you visit us daily or weekly or even just once a month, now is a great time to make your monthly contribution.

Please do your part today.

Donate

Cassini Launch

Listen
Media Options
Listen

Scientists, anti-nuclear activists and NASA veterans are stepping up their opposition to NASA’s planned launch of the Cassini space probe, which is slated to take off later this fall and then explore Saturn’s rings and moons. But because Cassini is fueled by 72 pounds of highly radioactive and poisonous plutonium, many safety experts, scientists, and anti-nuclear activists have vehemently opposed the launch.

Cassini was supposed to take off last month, but an air conditioner damaged part of the probe, delaying the mission. NASA is now aiming for a launch in mid-October.

Guests:

  • Bruce Gagnon, the state coordinator of the Florida Coalition for Peace and Justice.
  • Alan Kohn, a 30-year NASA veteran and former Emergency Preparedness Operations Officer at the Kennedy Space Center. He oversaw the last two plutonium launches — Galileo and Ulysses.

Related links:

.
.
.

Related Story

StorySep 11, 2025“Moment of Great Peril”: Jeff Sharlet on Killing of Charlie Kirk & Rising Political Violence in U.S.
The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top