Plutonium from the Sky

The loss of the Russian Mars 96 spacecraft has reopened questions about the safety of plutonium aboard spacecraft. The lethal radioactive element is used to generate power on long space missions, and there have always been questions about what would happen is a launch failed, and the plutonium were dispersed on Earth. NPR's Richard Harris looks at NASA's Cassini mission to Jupiter—to be launched next year—which will carry plutonium for its power.