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WG3K > ANS 20.10.24 18:54l 20 Lines 3803 Bytes #24 (0) @ AMSAT
BID : ANS294.4
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Subj: NASA's Europa Clipper Embarks on Epic Journey to Explore Ali
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NASA's highly anticipated Europa Clipper mission officially launched on Monday, October 14, 2024, embarking on a journey to explore Jupiter's moon, Europa. The spacecraft lifted off at 12:06 p.m. Eastern Time aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The launch, described by NASA commentator Derrol Nail as unveiling "the mysteries of an enormous ocean lurking beneath the icy crust of Jupiter's moon Europa," marks the beginning of an ambitious astrobiology mission.
The Falcon Heavy's 27 first-stage Merlin engines roared to life as the rocket ascended, with the two side boosters detaching about three minutes into flight. Separation of the second stage occurred shortly afterward, and Europa Clipper was deployed on its interplanetary trajectory nearly an hour later. Mission control successfully established communication with the probe, confirming that the spacecraft's solar arrays had deployed as planned, signaling a smooth start to its mission.
[https://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/NASA_Europa_Clipp...]https://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/NASA_Europa_Clipper_Spacecraft_Over_Moon_Europa-scaled.jpg
Artist's illustration depicts NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft in orbit over Jupiter's icy moon Europa. [Credit: NASAhttps://x.com/NASA/JPL-Caltech]
Monday's launch faced a slight delay due to Hurricane Milton, which made landfall on Florida's Gulf Coast last week, forcing NASA to close the Kennedy Space Center temporarily. Originally scheduled for October 10, the launch was pushed back while teams secured Europa Clipper inside a SpaceX hangar near Pad 39A. This marked the 11th Falcon Heavy launch and only the second time the rocket has been used for an interplanetary mission.
The Europa Clipper mission has faced a long and complex path to the launchpad. Initially, NASA intended to launch the probe using its Space Launch System (SLS), a powerful moon rocket still in development in the mid-2010s. However, repeated delays in the SLS program, along with NASA's commitment to using the early SLS vehicles for its Artemis moon missions, forced the agency to opt for a commercial alternative. A 2021 budget proposal allowed NASA to choose SpaceX's Falcon Heavy, though the shift meant the mission's journey to Jupiter would take nearly six years instead of three.
[https://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Europa-Clipper-So...]https://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Europa-Clipper-Solar-Array.jpg
Europa Clipper's massive solar arrays have a span of more than 100 feet (30.5 meters) when unfolded. [Credit: NASAhttps://x.com/NASA/Kim Shiflett]
At the heart of the mission is Europa, a moon thought to harbor a vast subsurface ocean beneath its icy crust. Europa has long intrigued scientists as one of the best places in the solar system to search for signs of life. However, NASA emphasizes that Europa Clipper's mission is not to find life directly but to assess the moon's habitability. The spacecraft, carrying a suite of nine science instruments, will study the composition of Europa's ocean, investigate its icy shell, and look for any signs of recent activity.
After a journey of nearly six years, Europa Clipper is expected to enter orbit around Jupiter in April 2030, where it will begin an extended series of flybys of Europa. Over the course of its mission, the probe will make close passes to the moon, gathering data that could inform future missions, including a potential lander. The mission is set to conclude in 2034, with NASA planning to crash Europa Clipper into Jupiter's moon Ganymede to avoid contaminating Europa's pristine environment.
[ANS thanks Josh Dinner, Space.comhttps://www.space.com/ for the above information]
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