NASA launches Europa mission to explore potentially habitable ocean moon

The launch, initially set for October 10, was delayed due to Hurricane Milton, but after the storm passed, NASA evaluated the facilities and cleared the spacecraft for its mission. After entering orbit, Clipper successfully communicated with NASA about an hour later, marking the first key milestone in its long journey to Jupiter. Its large solar arrays, designed to power the spacecraft, deployed three hours after launch, ensuring it has enough energy for the years ahead.

Europa Clipper is NASA’s first dedicated mission to study an ice-covered ocean world, aiming to investigate whether Europa could support life. Scientists believe the moon, which is encased in a thick layer of ice, hides a vast ocean beneath its surface. The mission will explore this ocean to see if it contains the conditions necessary for life as we know it.

“This is the start of our journey of discovery,” said Jenny Kampmeier, a science systems engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “Everything we’re going to learn from Europa is going to change our understanding of our place in the universe if this world could support life.”

The spacecraft is equipped with nine advanced instruments to study Europa’s surface and subsurface, including a gravity experiment to investigate the ocean beneath its ice shell. Europa’s ocean is believed to contain twice as much liquid water as Earth’s oceans, which makes it one of the most intriguing places in the solar system for astrobiologists.

“The instruments work together hand in hand to answer our most pressing questions about Europa,” said Robert Pappalardo, the mission’s project scientist. “We will learn what makes Europa tick, from its core and rocky interior to its ocean and ice shell, to its atmosphere and surrounding space environment.”

The Europa Clipper mission, which has been in development since 2013, faced challenges along the way. Engineers had concerns about how the spacecraft would withstand Jupiter’s intense radiation, which is 20,000 times stronger than Earth’s. However, after rigorous testing, the team received approval to proceed, preventing a 13-month delay in the mission.

After launching, the spacecraft will travel 1.8 billion miles and arrive at Jupiter in April 2030. Along the way, it will use gravity assists from Mars and Earth to conserve fuel and gain speed. Upon arrival, Europa Clipper will work alongside the European Space Agency’s Juice mission, which was launched in 2023, to study Jupiter and its largest moons.

The spacecraft, NASA’s largest for a planetary mission, will conduct 49 flybys of Europa. Instead of landing on the moon, it will fly over different locations, mapping nearly the entire surface over time. Engineers designed the spacecraft to endure Jupiter’s harsh radiation by keeping its flybys brief and using a titanium and aluminum vault to protect its electronics.

During these flybys, Europa Clipper will use a variety of instruments, including cameras, spectrometers, and radar, to study the ice and the ocean beneath it. One of its key tasks will be to determine the thickness of Europa’s ice shell and how it interacts with the ocean below. The spacecraft will also study plumes of water vapor observed on Europa, which may be venting from the ocean.

While Europa Clipper isn’t designed to detect life directly, it will gather crucial data on the moon’s habitability. Scientists hope the mission will pave the way for future exploration, potentially even a lander that could search for signs of life beneath Europa’s surface.

Astronomers believe the ingredients for life—water, energy, and the right chemistry—may already exist on Europa. The mission will explore whether these conditions coexist in a way that makes the moon’s environment suitable for life.