A European spacecraft rocketed away Friday on a decade-long quest to explore Jupiter and three of its icy moons
that could have buried oceans.
Then in perhaps the most impressive feat of all: Juice will attempt to go into orbit around Ganymede: No spacecraft has ever orbited a moon other than our own. But learning more about the moons and their potential seas will bring scientists closer to answering the is-there-life-elsewhere question. “That will be really the most interesting aspect of the mission,” he said.It will swoop within 200 kilometres of Callisto and 400 kilometres of Europa and Ganymede, completing 35 flybys while circling Jupiter. Then it will hit the brakes to orbit Ganymede, the primary target of the €1.6 billion mission.
The spacecraft, about the size of a small bus, won’t reach Jupiter until 2031, relying on gravity-assist flybys of Earth and our moon, as well as Venus.“These things take time – and they change our world,” said the Planetary Society’s chief executive, Bill Nye. The California-based space advocacy group organised a virtual watch party for the launch.
Europa is especially attractive to scientists hunting for signs of life beyond Earth. Juice will keep its Europa encounters to a minimum, however, because of the intense radiation there so close to Jupiter.
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Juice probe’s journey to Jupiter temporarily halted by poor weatherThe launch of a groundbreaking space mission to Jupiter has been delayed by 24 hours due to poor weather conditions. The European Space Agency's Juice probe was scheduled to lift off French Guiana on Thursday. The probe is set to embark on an eight-year mission to explore Jupiter, departing from the Guiana Space Centre. Once it arrives in 2031, Juice will investigate the planet's three largest icy moons.
Read more »
Battle over Caulfield Racecourse access as trust runs out of moneyThe trust overseeing public space at Caulfield Racecourse is running out of money and is warning that public access to the land at the centre of the track could be limited if it does not get funding.
Read more »
'So many vulnerable people': Sydney mum shares conversation with scammerTeonë was hoping to make space in her garage when she listed some clothes for sale. "Within seconds" of posting an ad, she received a message - that&x27;s when a traumatic ordeal began.
Read more »
Inside NASA's Mars habitat simulation where four 'astronaut-like' people will live for a yearNASA plans to send astronauts to Mars sometime in the 2030s, but before take-off, the space agency will observe the effects of a four-person crew staying in a simulated Mars habitat for one year.
Read more »
Rental inflation set to be the ‘biggest headwind’ Australians faceRental increases are a “big thing” Australians have to watch as rental inflation in the United States hit a record 8.3 per cent increase, says InvestSmart Chief Market Strategist Evan Lucas. “That is something that we here are probably going to start to see very soon,” he told Sky News Australia. “Between May and September is the most continuous sort of renewals of rent in this country, and we obviously have to deal with ten rate rises that basically started since May last year. “So that is why, watch that space in those subsectors – rent is going to be probably the biggest headwind and the biggest issue that we face, along with the US in our core inflation reading about why inflation may become quite stubbornly high.”
Read more »