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Updated April 14th, 2023 at 19:39 IST

ESA launches JUICE mission to Jupiter with Ariane 5 rocket's flawless lift off

The JUICE mission to Jupiter successfully lifted off aboard the Ariane 5 rocket at 5:44 pm IST from the French Guiana spaceport on April 14.

Reported by: Harsh Vardhan
ESA
JUICE spacecraft will reach its destination, which is the Jupiter system eight years later, in July 2031; Image: ESA | Image:self
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The JUICE mission to Jupiter successfully lifted off aboard the Ariane 5 rocket at 5:44 pm IST from the French Guiana spaceport on April 14. The launch was successful in the second attempt after the first one a day before was scrubbed just under 8 minutes from lift-off due to bad weather and fear of lightning strikes at the launch pad. According to ESA, the JUICE spacecraft will reach its destination, which is the Jupiter system eight years later, in July 2031 and begin its three-year-long mission (with possibilities of mission extension by a few months).

About 25 mins and 23 seconds later, JUICE was inserted into the target orbit and it separated from the rocket's upper stage at 27 mins and 44 seconds after lift-off to begin its 8-year-long journey. Less than an hour after the launch, ESA confirmed connecting JUICE to the 35 and 4.5 metre antennas in New Norcia, Australia and the deployment of the probe's solar panels, a huge milestone, shortly after. 

Objectives of JUICE mission

(JUICE spacecraft; Image: ESA)

ESA says the probe will help scientists uncover mysteries surrounding Jupiter and its Moons- Callisto, Ganymede and Europa-- which are believed to harbour vast oceans beneath their thick icy crust. Using a suite of ten instruments, JUICE will peer beneath the icy Moons and determine if the conditions there are suitable for life and if any microbial life could have thrived before. It will also make flybys of Jupiter and study its extreme climate and how the planet affects its Moons. 

The major objective, however, is entering the orbit of Ganymede, the Moon which is larger than Mercury and Pluto and has its own magnetic field. Before reaching Jupiter, JUICE will have to take an extended route to the gas giant which involves fly-bys near Earth, Moon and Venus. According to ESA, the spacecraft will make its first lunar-Earth flyby in August 2024 followed by a Venus flyby in August 2025. It will return to Earth for the second time in 2026 and again in 2029 for a final slingshot to Jupiter. 

To protect it from extreme temperatures (as high as 250°C and as low as -230°C), the spacecraft is wrapped in 500 thermal insulation blankets. Apart from ESA, NASA and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) have contributed to the £1.4 billion mission by developing certain instruments of the probe. 

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Published April 14th, 2023 at 19:39 IST

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