It would be the first aircraft on Titan and is intended to make the first powered and fully controlled atmospheric flight on any moon, with the intention of studying prebiotic chemistry and extraterrestrial habitability.

[17][18][19] The initial Dragonfly conception took place over a dinner conversation between scientists Jason W. Barnes of Department of Physics, University of Idaho, (who had previously made the AVIATR proposal for a Titan aircraft) and Ralph Lorenz of Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, and it took 15 months to make it a detailed mission proposal.

[23] Dragonfly is to use its multi-rotor vehicle to transport its instrument suite to multiple locations to make measurements of surface composition, atmospheric conditions, and geologic processes.

[35] Measuring the compositions of materials in different geologic settings is intended to reveal how far prebiotic chemistry has progressed in environments that provide known key ingredients for life, such as pyrimidines (bases used to encode information in DNA) and amino acids, the building blocks of proteins.

[36] Areas of particular interest are sites where extraterrestrial liquid water in impact melt or potential cryovolcanic flows may have interacted with the abundant organic compounds.

Dragonfly would provide the capability to explore diverse locations to characterize the habitability of Titan's environment, investigate how far prebiotic chemistry has progressed, and search for biosignatures indicative of life based on water as solvent and even hypothetical types of biochemistry.

[40] The Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (RTG) power source has been proven in multiple spacecraft, and the extensive use of quad drones on Earth provides a well-understood flight system that is being complemented with algorithms to enable independent actions in real-time.

[23] Dragonfly should be able to fly several kilometers,[41] powered by a lithium-ion battery, which is to be recharged by a Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG) during the night.

[43] The lander would then descend to the surface of Titan using an aeroshell and a series of two parachutes, while the spent cruise stage would burn up in uncontrolled atmospheric entry.

[51] The aeroshell is derived from the Genesis sample return capsule and the PICA heat shield is similar to MSL and Mars 2020 design and should protect the spacecraft for the first six minutes of its descent.

[43] The Dragonfly rotorcraft should land initially in dunes to the southeast of the Selk impact structure at the edge of the dark region called Shangri-La.

[53][5] It is planned to explore this region in a series of flights of up to 8 km (5.0 mi) each and acquire samples from compelling areas with a diverse geography.

After landing, it is planned to travel to the Selk impact crater, where in addition to tholin organic compounds, there is evidence of past liquid water.

[54] (7°00′N 199°00′W / 7.0°N 199.0°W / 7.0; -199.0)[55][52] Infrared measurements and other spectra by the Cassini orbiter show that the adjacent terrain exhibits a brightness suggestive of differences in thermal structure or composition, possibly caused by cryovolcanism generated by the impact – a fluidized ejecta blanket and fluid flows, now water ice.

[54][56] Such a region featuring a mix of organic compounds and water ice is a compelling target to assess how far the prebiotic chemistry may have progressed at the surface.