{"id":778726,"date":"2024-03-12T09:17:55","date_gmt":"2024-03-12T14:17:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=778726"},"modified":"2024-03-12T09:17:55","modified_gmt":"2024-03-12T14:17:55","slug":"a-message-to-europa-from-the-people-of-earth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=778726","title":{"rendered":"A message to Europa from the people of Earth"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Here\u2019s one side of a commemorative plate mounted on NASA\u2019s Europa Clipper spacecraft. It features U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Lim\u00f3n\u2019s handwritten In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa. Plus, this message to Europa will be affixed with a silicon microchip stenciled with millions of names submitted by the public. Europa isn\u2019t inhabited. Image via NASA\/ JPL-Caltech.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
  • The Europa Clipper spacecraft<\/strong> is scheduled to launch to Jupiter\u2019s moon Europa in October of 2024.<\/li>\n
  • Water connects Earth and Europa<\/strong>, the two ocean worlds Europa Clipper will travel between on its journey.<\/li>\n
  • A commemorative plate on Europa Clipper<\/strong> features a poem, plus waveforms of the word water<\/em> in 103 languages. And it includes a microchip with over 2.6 million names submitted by earthlings.<\/li>\n

    NASA\/ JPL published this original article on March 8, 2024. Edits by EarthSky.<\/em><\/p>\n

    NASA unveils design for message heading to Europa<\/h3>\n

    It\u2019s become a NASA tradition for the space agency to send inspirational messages into space. And the agency has special plans for the Europa Clipper when it launches toward Jupiter\u2019s moon Europa later this year. Europa isn\u2019t inhabited in the same sense that Earth is inhabited. Perhaps it isn\u2019t inhabited in any sense at all; we just don\u2019t know yet. But Europa does show strong evidence of an ocean under its icy crust. Plus, it has more than twice the amount of water of all of Earth\u2019s oceans combined. A triangular metal plate on Europa Clipper will honor that connection to Earth in several ways.<\/p>\n

    At the heart of the artifact is an engraving of U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Lim\u00f3n\u2019s handwritten In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa. Also, it\u2019ll contain the silicon microchip stenciled with 2.6 million names, submitted by the people of Earth. The microchip will be the centerpiece of an illustration of a bottle amid the Jovian system \u2013 a reference to NASA\u2019s Message in a Bottle campaign. That campaign invited the public to send their names to Europa on the spacecraft.<\/p>\n

    Join us in making sure everyone has access to the wonders of astronomy. Donate now!<\/p>\n

    A message to Europa<\/h3>\n

    Made of the metal tantalum and about 7 by 11 inches (18 by 28 centimeters), the plate features graphic elements on both sides. The outward-facing panel features art that highlights Earth\u2019s connection to Europa. Linguists collected recordings of the word water<\/em> spoken in 103 languages from families of languages around the world. They converted the audio files into waveforms (visual representations of sound waves) and etched them into the plate. The waveforms radiate out from a symbol representing the American Sign Language sign for water.<\/p>\n

    \"Silver
    The art on this side of the plate, which will seal an opening of the vault on NASA\u2019s Europa Clipper, features waveforms that are visual representations of the sound waves formed by the word water<\/em> in 103 languages. At center is a symbol representing the American Sign Language sign for water. Image via NASA\/ JPL-Caltech.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Hear the audio of the spoken languages and see the sign.<\/p>\n

    In the spirit of the Voyager spacecraft\u2019s Golden Record, which carries sounds and images to convey the richness and diversity of life on Earth, the layered message on Europa Clipper aims to spark the imagination and offer a unifying vision.<\/p>\n

    Lori Glaze, director of the Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said:<\/p>\n

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    The content and design of Europa Clipper\u2019s vault plate are swimming with meaning. The plate combines the best humanity has to offer across the universe \u2013 science, technology, education, art, and math. The message of connection through water, essential for all forms of life as we know it, perfectly illustrates Earth\u2019s tie to this mysterious ocean world we are setting out to explore.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    Who will read the message?<\/p>\n

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    Europa is not inhabited. And Europa Clipper won\u2019t be landing. After arriving at the Jupiter system in 2030, the spacecraft is intended to orbit Jupiter for four years. At the end of its mission, it won\u2019t be allowed to crash into Europa, because the moon\u2019s surface may be fragile and because Europa\u2019s oceans are suspected to be relatively near the surface. That means contamination to Europa\u2019s ocean from an earthly craft would, in theory, be possible. And nobody wants that!<\/p>\n

    So, when its mission ends, the craft might be directed to crash into another of Jupiter\u2019s moons, Ganymede, the biggest of the jovian moons. One can then imagine a future traveler to Ganymede \u2013 whether from Earth or elsewhere \u2013 finding the message in wreckage of the spacecraft.<\/p>\n

    Reaching out to the cosmos<\/h3>\n

    In 2030, after a 1.6-billion-mile (2.6-billion-kilometer) journey, Europa Clipper will begin orbiting Jupiter, making 49 close flybys of Europa. In order to determine if there are conditions that could support life, the spacecraft\u2019s suite of science instruments will gather data about the moon\u2019s subsurface ocean, icy crust, thin atmosphere, and space environment. The electronics for those instruments are housed in a massive metal vault designed to protect them from Jupiter\u2019s punishing radiation. The commemorative plate will seal an opening in the vault.<\/p>\n