The moons were imaged by NASAs Galileo spacecraft; Jupiter is seen here with a vibrant aurora, recorded by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.Credit: spacecraft: ESA/ATG medialab; Jupiter: NASA/ESA/J. Mankinds next strong mission to the outer Solar System, ESAs Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer, Juice, is poised to explore huge planet Jupiter and its largest moons. In April 2023, Juice, the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer by ESA, will embark on an eight-year journey towards Jupiter.
Juice was chosen in 2012 as the very first Large-class objective in ESAs Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 program. With its effective instrument bundle, Juice will offer the most detailed analysis yet of Jupiter and its water worlds as an archetype for gas giants throughout the Universe. Its results will not just assist us dig deeper into the household history of our own Solar System however will also put in context results from ESAs fleet of exoplanet objectives analyzing Jupiter-like systems.In the artists impression, which is not to scale, Ganymede is displayed in the foreground, Callisto to the far right, and Europa center-right. Volcanically active moon Io is also revealed, at left. The moons were imaged by NASAs Galileo spacecraft; Jupiter is seen here with a vibrant aurora, recorded by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.Credit: spacecraft: ESA/ATG medialab; Jupiter: NASA/ESA/J. Nichols (University of Leicester); Ganymede: NASA/JPL; Io: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; Callisto and Europa: NASA/JPL/DLR
A grand odyssey of expedition is about to begin. Mankinds next vibrant mission to the external Solar System, ESAs Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer, Juice, is poised to check out giant planet Jupiter and its biggest moons. These interesting worlds have ignited our interest since Galileo initially raised his telescope to the world and found its four largest moons: Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, 3 of which are thought to harbor underground oceans.
Early space probes visiting the Jovian system have actually raised more questions than responses. Thanks to Juice, many of those answers are now within reach. ESA is releasing the spacecraft in April 2023 on an eight-year journey to the far-off planet.
To reveal the concealed secrets of these mystical worlds, Juice is equipped with the most powerful science instruments ever sent to the external Solar System. The spacecraft will deal with many dangers along the way: radiation, extreme temperature levels, and the huge gravitational pull of Jupiter, all while running numerous countless kilometers from Earth. In the safe hands of ESAs operators to assist it safely through these difficulties, the risks will be worth it for the science that Juice is predestined to uncover.
In April 2023, Juice, the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer by ESA, will embark on an eight-year journey toward Jupiter. The mission aims to explore the development of habitable worlds around gas giants, using the Jupiter system as a design for the lots of huge worlds discovered orbiting other stars. It will make comprehensive observations of the huge gas planet and its 3 big ocean-bearing moons– Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa– with a comprehensive suite of remote noticing, geophysical, and in situ instruments.
The countdown to this new period of Jupiter system exploration has begun. Stay tuned!