NASA's Europa Clipper mission took flight on October 14, 2023, marking the beginning of what scientists hope will be groundbreaking research on Jupiter's moon, Europa. The spacecraft launched from the Kennedy Space Center aboard SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket, setting off on its epic 1.8 billion-mile cruise to one of the solar system's most intriguing locations. With its frozen crust concealing a vast ocean of liquid water, Europa is seen as one of the best candidates to explore for potential extraterrestrial life. Researchers and engineers involved with the mission celebrated the launch, eager to see what discoveries lie ahead as the Clipper makes its way through space.
The Clipper has been over ten years in the making, equipped with nine scientific instruments intended to investigate Europa's icy surface and analyze its internal processes. One of the standout tools onboard is the Mapping Imaging Spectrometer for Europa (MISE), developed with significant contributions from researchers at Caltech, including Jonathan Lunine and Bethany Ehlmann. This instrument aims to create detailed maps of Europa's surface composition, searching for salts, ices, and other chemical compounds necessary for life.
While water is often mentioned as the key ingredient for life, other elements such as chemical energy are equally important. Discovering fresh chemical reactants on Europa's surface could indicate the moon's subsurface environment is suitable for life. Ehlmann explains, "There are two ways to freshen the supply of chemical reactants: Implanted materials from Europa’s surface ice are cycled down, or tidal flexing of Europa makes new fractures, supplying fresh rock to react with isolated waters." The data collected by MISE could reveal insights about the ocean beneath the ice and its potential to support life's trifles.
But MISE is just one slice of the pie. Lunine is also part of the Gravity and Radio Science Team on the Europa Clipper. This team plans to leverage the spacecraft's radio system to measure Europa's gravity field, aiming to assess the ocean's depth and the possible features of its seafloor. This data could be instrumental for future missions, including any potential landers on the icy moon.
Despite the six-year wait before Clipper reaches its celestial destination, both Lunine and Ehlmann maintain enthusiasm. They remind everyone how these lengthy missions are standard practice for deep-space exploration. For example, the renowned Cassini spacecraft took seven years to reach Saturn, and Voyager 2 required twelve years to arrive at Neptune. Time may be of the essence, but during the Clipper’s long voyage, various prep work for scientific data collection will progress. Ehlmann noted, "We’re working on maturing our ice-mapping techniques by investigating past data from other celestial bodies like the asteroid Ceres."
Fast forward to recent updates, and the Europa Clipper is already showing progress. Reports reveal the spacecraft has started deploying its science instruments, including the magnetometer and radar antennas. NASA's evaluations indicate these instruments are functioning as intended, contributing significantly to the mission’s experimental framework. The magnetometer deployed on its boom can measure Europa's magnetic field, which plays a key role in confirming the moon's subsurface ocean and providing insights on its depth and salinity.
The radar antennas, part of the Radar for Europa Assessment and Sounding (REASON) instrument, consist of high-frequency antennas and smaller antennas tasked with analyzing Europa's icy crust. Jordan Evans, the project manager for the Europa Clipper mission at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, remarked on monitoring these deployments closely to gather optimal data back on Earth.
Looking forward, NASA has outlined several gravity-assist maneuvers so the spacecraft can gather more scientific insights. Notably, it will fly by Mars in March 2025 to conduct preliminary tests and capture thermal images of the planet, as remapping instruments along the way. Another important gravity assist around Earth is planned for December 2026, which will help fine-tune the course toward Jupiter and calibrate the magnetometer.
The ambitious spacecraft, recognized as the largest ever built for planetary exploration, is expected to reach Jupiter by 2030. Once there, it will conduct 49 flybys of Europa starting from 2031. Each of these flybys is anticipated to gather wealth of information to evaluate whether the moon's environment could be compatible with life.
NASA continues to engage fans of space exploration with lectures about the technical details and the significance of the Europa Clipper mission. For example, on December 4, Robert Pappalardo, project scientist for Europa Clipper, is expected to give insights on the mission's scientific objectives. Those interested can find more information on how to register for the lecture online.