API VERSION: 1.2
API SOURCE: NASA/JPL Horizons API

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 Revised: Jul 27, 2005   Pioneer 10 Spacecraft (interplanetary) / (Sun)     -23
                       http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/tmp/1972-012A.html

 BACKGROUND
  This mission was the first to be sent to the outer solar system and the 
  first to investigate the planet Jupiter. After the encounter, it followed 
  an escape trajectory from the solar system. 

  The spacecraft achieved its closest approach to Jupiter on December 4, 1973
  (UTC), when it reached approximately 2.8 Jovian radii (about 200,000 km). 

  The last fully successful acquisition of signal was March 3, 2002. Pioneer 10
  signal at the Earth (<= 185 dBm) is now at DSN threshold limit of reception. 

          Launched            : 1972-03-03 at 01:49:00 UTC
          On-orbit dry mass   : 258 kg
          Nominal Power Output: 165 W

 SPACECRAFT TRAJECTORY: ("pfile10.nio")

  Trajectory was provided by JPL Navigation Team. The JPL Multimission NAV and 
  Solar System Dynamics Group source files merged consist of:
 
     PN10A, PN10B, PN10C, PN10D, PN10E, PN10F, PN10G, DE118
 
  The circumstances pertaining to the regeneration of the above spacecraft
  trajectory source files PN10* are not well known.
 
  DE118 was the standard JPL planet ephemeris for the P10 Jupiter flyby era.

  NOTE: This trajectory is suitable for general historical purposes, but should
  be used cautiously for high precision or tracking data applications. This is 
  due to potential dynamical mismatches between the Pioneer-10 era models 
  and the current modern solutions used by Horizons; for example, the old 
  DE-118 planetary ephemeris solution and the Lieske E3 satellite theory of
  JUP035 of that time, as compared to what is used now. 

  For example, if the Pioneer-10 solutions used here incorporate planet or 
  satellite ephemeris corrections estimated at the time, distance from the 
  satellites returned by Horizons could be slightly different relative to 
  the original solutions. However, the coordinate system transformation from 
  the original DE-118 planetary ephemeris to the modern ICRF frame IS known 
  and computed by Horizons.
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