Tag Archives: Clipper

NASA Space Technology An artist's impression of Europa Clipper performing a flyby of Europa as it orbits Jupiter(Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)NASA has successfully launched the Europa Clipper, the agency's biggest-ever interplanetary spacecraft, into space and it's now headed for Jupiter's frozen moon Europa."Congratulations to our Europa Clipper team for beginning the first journey to an ocean world beyond Earth," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement.The craft took off Oct. 14 on top of a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It was originally slated to launch Oct. 10, but the mission was pushed back because of Hurricane Miltonwhich smashed into Florida Oct. 9.When the Europa Clipper arrives in 2030, the orbiter will study the frozen moon's hidden ocean, which is locked beneath an icy shell, to determine how...

NASA Space Technology Monika LuabeyaOct 15, 2024A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket carrying NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024.Europa Clipper is the first mission designed to conduct a detailed study of Jupiter’s moon Europa to determine if it currently has habitable conditions. The spacecraft will travel 1.8 billion miles (2.9 billion km) to reach Jupiter in April 2030. It will orbit Jupiter and conduct 49 close flybys of Europa.Follow Europa Clipper’s journey in NASA’s Eyes on the Solar System app.Image credit: SpaceX