NASAs Europa Clipper, portrayed in this illustration that was updated in December 2020, will swoop around Jupiter on an elliptical path, dipping near to its moon Europa on each flyby to gather information. Credit: NASA/JPL-CaltechNASAs Europa Clipper objective is advancing with the processing of large solar arrays at Kennedy Space Center, essential for powering the spacecraft to study Europa, among the most appealing habitable moons in our planetary system. The spacecraft, being the biggest ever for a planetary mission, will introduce aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.Processing of the big solar ranges constructed for NASAs Europa Clipper is now underway inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the firms Kennedy Space Center in Florida.Planned to come to Jupiter in April 2030, the spacecraft will study Jupiters moon Europa, which reveals strong proof below its icy crust of a global ocean over twice the volume of all Earths oceans. Europa is presently considered one of the most promising habitable environments in our solar system.Technicians analyze the very first of 2 totally extended five-panel solar selections constructed for NASAs Europa Clipper suspended on a support group called a gravity offload component during examination and cleaning as part of assembly, launch, and test operations inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the firms Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, March 6, 2024. Credit: NASA/Ben SmegelskyAssembly and PreparationOnce processing of the very first five-panel solar selection is complete, technicians will eliminate it from the gravity offload fixture, which helps support the weight of the range. The very same steps will then be repeated with the second solar selection. Developed by Airbus in Leiden, Netherlands, the arrays showed up at Kennedy late last month by truck, after taking a trip to the U.S. by air.When both solar arrays are installed and deployed on Europa Clipper– the firms largest spacecraft ever established for a planetary mission– the spacecraft will cover an overall length of more than 100 feet and weigh 7,145 pounds without the inclusion of propellants. The spacecraft requires the big solar ranges to collect adequate light to power it as it operates in the Jupiter system, which is more than five times as far from the Sun as Earth.The first of 2 five-panel solar selections developed for NASAs Europa Clipper stands inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida in preparation for evaluation and cleansing as part of launch, test, and assembly operations on Wednesday, March 6, 2024. Credit: NASA/Ben SmegelskyEuropa Clippers Journey AheadEuropa Clipper is being put together at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California and is managed in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland. The spacecraft will ship to Florida later on this year for launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Kennedys Launch Complex 39A. NASAs Launch Services Program, based at Kennedy, is managing the launch service.
