{"id":785881,"date":"2024-07-16T17:15:54","date_gmt":"2024-07-16T22:15:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=785881"},"modified":"2024-07-16T17:15:54","modified_gmt":"2024-07-16T22:15:54","slug":"juice-mission-to-jupiter-to-flyby-moon-and-earth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=785881","title":{"rendered":"JUICE mission to Jupiter to flyby moon and Earth"},"content":{"rendered":"


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View full image. | Here\u2019s a timeline and the path the JUICE mission will take as it makes a flyby of the moon and Earth. ESA said the mission will achieve a world first: \u201c\u2026 using the gravity of the moon and then Earth to bend its path through space, bringing it one step closer to Jupiter.\u201d Image via ESA.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Juice mission to make flyby of the moon and Earth<\/h3>\n

On August 19 and 20, 2024, the JUICE spacecraft will sweep near the moon and Earth system, coming as close as it can to both worlds before slingshotting out into space again with an altered speed and direction. These gravity assists will help propel the craft its way to Jupiter\u2019s icy moons. It\u2019ll be the world\u2019s first flyby gravity assist using both Earth and its moon and the first-ever double<\/em> gravity assist. The craft will encounter the moon first and then Earth, 36 hours later. The result will be a single flyby maneuver. <\/p>\n

JUICE launched on its journey to Jupiter\u2019s moons in 2023. This will be its first gravity assist, followed by one using Venus in 2025, and two more using Earth in 2026 and 2029, before arriving in Jupiter\u2019s vicinity in 2031.<\/p>\n

The flybys of the moon and Earth are technically braking maneuvers. They\u2019ll line JUICE up to reach Venus, where the gravity assist will work to speed up<\/em> the spacecraft, or give it the juice, if you will<\/em>. The spacecraft will come within 430 miles (700 km) of the moon and about 4,300 miles (6,800 km) of Earth during the flybys. Ignacio Tanco of ESA said: <\/p>\n

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It\u2019s like passing through a very narrow corridor, very, very quickly: pushing the accelerator to the maximum when the margin at the side of the road is just millimeters.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Science and observations<\/h3>\n

JUICE\u2019s 10 instruments will be active as the spacecraft makes its flybys. It\u2019s an important opportunity to test the equipment before it reaches Jupiter. In particular, the Radar for Icy Moon Exploration (RIME) instrument will get eight minutes of solo observation as it passes the moon. The instrument is sensitive to other electronic noise.<\/p>\n

When the spacecraft passes overhead, people in Southeast Asia and the Pacific have an opportunity to see it pass. Try using binoculars or a telescope, and get more info on its path here. Plus, while you\u2019re looking up at Juice, it will be looking down at us. Expect to see images of Earth from Juice soon after the flyby!<\/p>\n

Graphics for the moon and Earth flyby<\/h3>\n
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The JUICE mission will first flyby the moon on August 19, 2024. It is the first step in a world\u2019s first flyby of both the moon and Earth. Image via ESA.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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On August 20, 2024, the JUICE mission will flyby Earth. It will be coming off a flyby of the moon. These gravity assists will help JUICE eventually reach Jupiter. Image via ESA.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

JUICE mission launched on April 14, 2023<\/h3>\n

ESA\u2018s JUICE mission launched on April 14, 2023, after a one-day delay due to lightning at its spaceport in French Guiana. The spacecraft lifted off successfully into cloudy skies, beginning a multi-year mission to Jupiter and its icy moons. <\/p>\n

As often happens with missions to the outer solar system, the spacecraft will take a circuitous route to Jupiter, making multiple sweeps past the Earth, moon and Venus. Then, starting in 2031, it\u2019ll arrive at the giant planet. At that time it\u2019ll perform 35 flybys of the Galilean moons Ganymede, Callisto and Europa, before going into orbit around the largest moon, Ganymede. <\/p>\n

JUICE stands for JUpiter Icy Moons Explorer. <\/p>\n

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This is JUICE\u2019s journey to Jupiter. It will become a reality (fingers crossed) in July 2031, when JUICE is scheduled to arrive at Jupiter. It\u2019s impressive, especially considering the spacecraft will still be soaring around Earth in 2029! Only when it has completed its 2nd flyby of our home planet will JUICE make a quick 2-year hop to Jupiter. There, it\u2019ll complete 35 flybys of the giant planet\u2019s 3 largest moons: Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa (pictured 1st, 5th, and 4th from the left, respectively). Image via ESA.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jammed antenna<\/h3>\n

The JUICE mission\u2019s primary antenna jammed soon after launch. But after 3 weeks of troubleshooting, engineers finally managed to fix the antenna. As the spacecraft traveled through deep space, JUICE mission control tried using thrusters to shake the antenna. Then they tried warming the jammed components in the sun. Finally, the team fired a mechanical device called an actuator<\/em>. And that\u2019s what made the antenna break free from its stuck position on May 12, 2023. This RIME antenna, which stands for Radar for Icy Moons Exploration<\/em>, will be used to study the structure of Jupiter\u2019s icy moons down to a depth of 5.5 miles (9 km) when it finally reaches the gas giant in July 2031.<\/p>\n

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? Shocking RIME update ?<\/p>\n

The RIME antenna on @ESA_JUICE<\/a> is free!!!<\/p>\n

This Juice Monitoring Camera GIF shows the moments after the Flight Control Team at ESA #MissionControl<\/a> fired the remaining ‘actuator’ on the jammed bracket.<\/p>\n

More info: pic.twitter.com\/T96RIg3hKA<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 ESA Operations (@esaoperations) May 12, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

JUICE mission goals<\/h3>\n

ESA said its goals for JUICE are to:<\/p>\n

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\u2026 make detailed observations of the giant gas planet and its three large ocean-bearing moons \u2013 Ganymede, Callisto and Europa \u2013 with a suite of remote sensing, geophysical and in situ instruments. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

And, ESA said, the mission will characterize these moons as both planetary objects and possible habitats<\/em>. <\/p>\n

ESA hopes that a wider study of the Jupiter system can be used as an archetype for gas giant planets and their moons, across our Milky Way galaxy.<\/p>\n

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Liftoff for humankind\u2019s next bold mission to the outer Solar System \u2013 #ESAJuice<\/a> onboard @Ariane5<\/a> #VA260<\/a> ? ?#DestinationJupiter<\/a> #ExploreFarther<\/a> <\/p>\n

\u2014 ESA’s Juice mission (@ESA_JUICE) April 14, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Why JUICE will study Europa<\/h3>\n

JUICE will arrive at Jupiter in 2031. One of the moons it will observe is perhaps the most fascinating of the Jovian moons to Earthly scientists: Europa. This moon is thought to have an ocean of liquid water under its ice crust (also made of water ice). And JUICE is designed to look for the sort of chemistry on Europa that is essential to life on Earth \u2026 For example, organic molecules, or molecules containing carbon that are key to life on Earth. <\/p>\n

JUICE also aims to understand the formation of Europa\u2019s surface features and the composition of any non-water-ice material.<\/p>\n