Europa Clipper Project

Purpose of the mission?

To fly to Jupiters moon Europa and study the ocean of liquid surface below the icy surface and find out if it supports the proper conditions of life. Also, understand the moons geology and composition. Scientists think that the saltwater ocean below the icy surface consists of more than twice as much liquid water than all of Earths oceans combined.

General information

Europa Clipper was built in NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. It was launched on October 14, 2024 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It’s 100 feet long and weighs around 13,000 pounds. It will take around 5.5 years and 1.8 billion miles to reach Jupiter.

Risk/challenge

Jupiter is surrounded by a massive magnetic field. As the field spins, it creates radiation that can damage the spacecraft. This raised concerns on whether or not Europa Clipper can function in that type of environment.

Protection from Jupiter’s radiation?

a 1 centimeter aluminum vault is placed and Europa Clipper will orbit wide-ranged around Jupiter while passing Europa 49 times to gather scientific data.