Europa Clipper: New NASA mission to explore this icy world is a go

NASA's Europa Clipper mission passed a mission planning milestone, known as Key Decision Point E, on Monday, implying the mission is approved for launch around Thursday, Oct. 10

Nasa is all set to launch the Europa Clipper mission next month to explore Jupiter's moon Europa after the review of the spacecraft's resilience to intense radiation on September 10. The Europa Clipper mission costing $5 billion aims to determine whether the ocean believed to exist beneath Europa’s icy surface could support life.

Previously, some concerns were raised about the reliability of the spacecraft's transistors as similar issues were observed in other missions prompting Nasa to expedite ahead of the tight October launch Window in October. Nasa has a three-week window to send the probe on its journey with the launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket scheduled to take place on October 10. 

 

If the window is missed, the mission would be delayed for a year, in the wait for the next ideal planetary alignment as the spacecraft needs gravitational assistance from both Mars and Earth to reach Jupiter. 

Largest planetary spacecraft ever built

Nasa’s Europa Clipper will be equipped with very large solar arrays to power its journey to Jupiter's moon, using energy derived from sunlight. Each array is designed to be 14.2 meters long and about 4.1 meters high, which is the largest that the space agency has deployed for any planetary probe. The surface area of the arrays has to be as large as possible to soak the maximum amount of sunlight possible to power the journey.

After being deployed in space, Europa Clipper will be as big as a professional basketball court, spanning over 100 feet (30.5 meters) in size, with its wings (solar arrays) extended. Its enormous radars are also expected to add to the size of the spacecraft. 
 

Europa Clipper is the largest spacecraft NASA has ever developed for a planetary mission, according to the official website of the space agency.

What will Europa Clipper do?

The main objective of Clipper is to determine whether the much-talked about signs of life beneath the icy surface of the moon are feasible. The mission will seek to study the ice shell in depth, along with the ocean beneath it. Another objective is to study the geology of the icy moon and its composition. 

Europa has intrigued scientists for decades due to its interesting features. The previous investigations have shown strong evidence for an ocean of liquid water existing beneath the icy crust. According to scientists, Europa is one of the most promising places in the solar system which could support habitable environments.  

“The mission’s detailed exploration of Europa will help scientists better understand the astrobiological potential for habitable worlds beyond our planet,” according to the Nasa website. The probe is scheduled to conduct over 50 flybys of the moon while it revolves around the mother planet, Jupiter, approaching the surface to as close as 25 kilometres.

Europa Clipper is set to take about six years to reach Jupiter. Once there, it will orbit the planet every week for three weeks, conducting close flybys of Europa to study its surface. Using advanced instruments such as ice-penetrating radar, the spacecraft will map around the entire moon, hoping to uncover clues to the ocean hidden beneath its icy shell.