All that you need to know about the JUICE mission:
- The Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) mission, led by the European Space Agency (ESA), aims to explore Jupiter's icy moons - Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa—to investigate their potential habitability.
- JUICE is the first interplanetary mission to the outer solar system by a space agency other than NASA and will make ESA the first agency to orbit a moon other than Earth’s.
- The mission was launched on April 14, 2023, aboard an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana, marking the last ESA science mission using this rocket.
- JUICE was chosen over other proposals, such as the Advanced Telescope for High Energy Astrophysics (ATHENA) and the New Gravitational Wave Observatory, highlighting its priority within ESA’s Cosmic Vision Programme.
- Airbus Defence and Space designed and built the spacecraft, which cost ESA approximately €1.5 billion.
- JUICE's arrival at Jupiter is planned for July 2031, following an eight-year journey using four gravity assists: one from the Earth-Moon system, one from Venus, and two more from Earth.
- The spacecraft will orbit Ganymede, marking the first time a spacecraft has orbited a moon other than our own.
- After arrival, JUICE will conduct a close-up science mission of Jupiter’s largest moons, particularly Ganymede, to study potential liquid water oceans beneath their icy crusts.
- JUICE’s journey includes passing through the asteroid belt twice, with plans to perform more than 25 gravity assists and 2 Europa flybys.
- Initially proposed as a part of the Europa Jupiter System Mission – Laplace, JUICE was officially selected as ESA’s first large-class mission in the Cosmic Vision Programme in 2012.
- The spacecraft carries a high-gain 2.5-meter antenna and a steerable medium-gain antenna, both of which will use X- and K-band frequencies, enabling a 2 Gb/day downlink rate.
- JUICE’s power is generated by solar arrays, a design challenge for the mission given Jupiter's low sunlight and intense radiation environment.
- The spacecraft is protected from Jupiter’s harsh radiation by 100 kg of multilayer insulation, along with additional radiation shielding.
- It carries about 3,000 kg of chemical propellant for maneuvers, which will achieve a total delta-V of approximately 2,700 m/s.
- The spacecraft is three-axis stabilized using momentum wheels, a critical feature for stable science observations.
- JUICE’s payload includes 11 scientific instruments, among them the JANUS camera, MAJIS imaging spectrometer, RIME radar sounder, and GALA laser altimeter.
- To study Ganymede’s complex geological history, JUICE will use the JANUS camera, capturing high-resolution images down to 2.4 meters per pixel, allowing for detailed geological and topographical mapping.
- The spacecraft’s primary instrument suite, weighing 280 kg, also includes the MAJIS spectrometer, which can detect surface minerals and ices by measuring visible and infrared light, critical for analyzing the surface composition.
- The laser altimeter, GALA, will produce a 3D map of Ganymede’s surface, analyzing variations in topography and aiding in the detection of tidal deformations caused by an underlying ocean.
- GALA will measure tidal flexing with high precision, helping to confirm whether liquid oceans are present under the crusts of Ganymede and Callisto.
- Using RIME, JUICE will also be the first spacecraft to perform radar mapping of ice up to 9 km deep, unveiling subsurface structures and potentially water layers within the icy crusts.
- The UVS instrument will monitor exospheres and auroras on the icy moons, searching for traces of gases escaping from possible subsurface oceans through fractures in the icy crusts.
- These instruments, collaboratively developed by Europe, the US, and Japan, will map and analyze the surface composition, topography, and physical properties of Jupiter’s icy moons.
- In July 2032, JUICE will perform two close flybys of Europa, a region of special interest for studying organic molecules and surface features.
- After Europa, it will enter an inclined orbit phase to explore Jupiter's polar regions and magnetosphere in detail.
- The spacecraft’s instruments are geared to detect subsurface oceans, particularly using RIME, which will scan as deep as 9 km beneath icy crusts.
- In December 2034, JUICE will enter a polar orbit around Ganymede, conducting extensive observations of the moon's magnetic field, icy crust, and potential subsurface ocean.
- As Ganymede is the only moon in the solar system with its own magnetic field, JUICE will analyze its interaction with Jupiter’s magnetosphere, which is crucial for understanding magnetospheric dynamics.
- JUICE will also study the composition of non-ice material on Europa and observe the surfaces and exospheres of Ganymede and Callisto.
- Among its key scientific goals, JUICE will map the topography of Ganymede and measure tidal deformations to determine the depth and state of potential subsurface oceans.
- The RIME radar faced deployment issues post-launch but was successfully deployed after several attempts, underscoring the mission’s commitment to overcoming technical challenges.
- By the end of 2035, JUICE will run out of propellant and is expected to impact Ganymede as gravitational perturbations gradually reduce its orbit.
- The overlapping timeline with NASA's Europa Clipper mission, launched in 2024, will enable complementary data collection from two spacecraft in the Jovian system, enhancing scientific outcomes.
JUICE’s data will provide insight into the habitability of icy moons, shedding light on conditions for life in extreme environments and informing future exploration of outer solar system moons.
