5 min read<\/p>\n
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/1-clipper-on-the-pad-24-10-13-at-10-05-47%E2%80%AFam.png?w=1273\")
<\/a><\/figure>\nA SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket with the Europa Clipper spacecraft aboard is seen at Launch Complex 39A as preparations continue for the mission, Sunday, Oct. 13, at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. <\/div>\nNASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nFind details about the launch sequences for the orbiter, which is targeting an Oct. 14 liftoff on its mission to search for ingredients of life at Jupiter\u2019s moon Europa.<\/em><\/p>\nIn less than 24 hours, NASA\u2019s Europa Clipper spacecraft is slated to launch from the agency\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard a Falcon Heavy rocket. Its sights are set on Jupiter\u2019s ice-encased moon Europa, which the spacecraft will fly by 49 times, coming as close as 16 miles (25 kilometers) from the surface as it searches for ingredients of life.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Launch is set for 12:06 p.m. EDT on Monday, Oct. 14, with additional opportunities through Nov 6. Each opportunity is instantaneous, meaning there is only one exact time per day when launch can occur. Plans to launch Europa Clipper on Oct. 10 were delayed due to impacts of Hurricane Milton.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>Watch this video to learn more about NASA\u2019s Europa Clipper, the first mission dedicated to studying Jupiter\u2019s icy moon Europa. Evidence suggests that beneath Europa\u2019s frozen surface is a global ocean of water, and scientists want to find out if there\u2019s also the right chemistry and energy to sustain life. NASA\/JPL-Caltech<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nWith its massive solar arrays extended, Europa Clipper could span a basketball court (100 feet, or 30.5 meters, tip to tip). In fact, it\u2019s the largest spacecraft NASA has ever built for a planetary mission. The journey to Jupiter is a long one \u2014 1.8 billion miles (2.9 billion kilometers) \u2014 and rather than taking a straight path there, Europa Clipper will loop around Mars and then Earth, gaining speed as it swings past.<\/p>\n
The spacecraft will begin orbiting Jupiter in April 2030, and in 2031 it will start making those 49 science-focused flybys of Europa while looping around the gas giant. The orbit is designed to maximize the science Europa Clipper can conduct and minimize exposure to Jupiter\u2019s notoriously intense radiation.<\/p>\n
But, of course, before any of that can happen, the spacecraft has to leave Earth behind. The orbiter\u2019s solar arrays<\/a> are folded and stowed for launch. Testing is complete on the spacecraft\u2019s various systems and its payload of nine science instruments<\/a> and a gravity science investigation. Loaded with over 6,060 pounds (2,750 kilograms) of the propellant that will get Europa Clipper to Jupiter, the spacecraft has been encapsulated in the protective nose cone, or payload fairing, atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, which is poised for takeoff from historic Launch Complex 39A.<\/p>\nLaunch Sequences<\/h3>\n
The Falcon Heavy has two stages and two side boosters. After the side boosters separate, the core stage will be expended into the Atlantic Ocean. Then the second stage of the rocket, which will help Europa Clipper escape Earth\u2019s gravity, will fire its engine.<\/p>\n
\n\n\n![\"Technicians](\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/ksc-20241002-ph-jbs02-0041large.jpg?w=1280\")
<\/a><\/figure>\nTechnicians encapsulated NASA\u2019s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside payload fairings on Wednesday, Oct. 2, at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The fairings will protect the spacecraft during launch as it begins its journey to explore Jupiter\u2019s icy moon Europa. <\/div>\nNASA\/Ben Smegelsky<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nOnce the rocket is out of Earth\u2019s atmosphere, about 50 minutes after launch, the payload fairing will separate from its ride, split into two halves, and fall safely back to Earth, where it will be recovered and reused. The spacecraft will then separate from the upper stage about an hour after launch. Stable communication with the spacecraft is expected by about 19 minutes after separation from the rocket, but it could take somewhat longer.<\/p>\n
About three hours after launch, Europa Clipper will deploy its pair of massive solar arrays, one at a time, and direct them at the Sun.<\/p>\n
Mission controllers will then begin to reconfigure the spacecraft into its planned operating mode. The ensuing three months of initial checkout include a commissioning phase to confirm that all hardware and software is operating as expected.<\/p>\n
While Europa Clipper is not a life-detection mission, it will tell us whether Europa is a promising place to pursue an answer to the fundamental question about our solar system and beyond: Are we alone?<\/p>\n
Scientists suspect that the ingredients for life \u2014 water, chemistry, and energy \u2014 could exist at the moon Europa right now. Previous missions have found strong evidence of an ocean beneath the moon\u2019s thick icy crust, potentially with twice as much liquid water as all of Earth\u2019s oceans combined. Europa may be home to organic compounds, which are essential chemical building blocks for life. Europa Clipper will help scientists confirm whether organics are there, and also help them look for evidence of energy sources under the moon\u2019s surface.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/1-clipper-on-the-pad-24-10-13-at-10-05-47%E2%80%AFam.png\")
<\/a><\/figure>Find details about the launch sequences for the orbiter, which is targeting an Oct. 14 liftoff on its mission to search for ingredients of life at Jupiter\u2019s moon Europa.<\/em><\/p>\n In less than 24 hours, NASA\u2019s Europa Clipper spacecraft is slated to launch from the agency\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard a Falcon Heavy rocket. Its sights are set on Jupiter\u2019s ice-encased moon Europa, which the spacecraft will fly by 49 times, coming as close as 16 miles (25 kilometers) from the surface as it searches for ingredients of life.\u00a0<\/p>\n Launch is set for 12:06 p.m. EDT on Monday, Oct. 14, with additional opportunities through Nov 6. Each opportunity is instantaneous, meaning there is only one exact time per day when launch can occur. Plans to launch Europa Clipper on Oct. 10 were delayed due to impacts of Hurricane Milton.<\/p>\n With its massive solar arrays extended, Europa Clipper could span a basketball court (100 feet, or 30.5 meters, tip to tip). In fact, it\u2019s the largest spacecraft NASA has ever built for a planetary mission. The journey to Jupiter is a long one \u2014 1.8 billion miles (2.9 billion kilometers) \u2014 and rather than taking a straight path there, Europa Clipper will loop around Mars and then Earth, gaining speed as it swings past.<\/p>\n The spacecraft will begin orbiting Jupiter in April 2030, and in 2031 it will start making those 49 science-focused flybys of Europa while looping around the gas giant. The orbit is designed to maximize the science Europa Clipper can conduct and minimize exposure to Jupiter\u2019s notoriously intense radiation.<\/p>\n But, of course, before any of that can happen, the spacecraft has to leave Earth behind. The orbiter\u2019s solar arrays<\/a> are folded and stowed for launch. Testing is complete on the spacecraft\u2019s various systems and its payload of nine science instruments<\/a> and a gravity science investigation. Loaded with over 6,060 pounds (2,750 kilograms) of the propellant that will get Europa Clipper to Jupiter, the spacecraft has been encapsulated in the protective nose cone, or payload fairing, atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, which is poised for takeoff from historic Launch Complex 39A.<\/p>\n The Falcon Heavy has two stages and two side boosters. After the side boosters separate, the core stage will be expended into the Atlantic Ocean. Then the second stage of the rocket, which will help Europa Clipper escape Earth\u2019s gravity, will fire its engine.<\/p>\n Once the rocket is out of Earth\u2019s atmosphere, about 50 minutes after launch, the payload fairing will separate from its ride, split into two halves, and fall safely back to Earth, where it will be recovered and reused. The spacecraft will then separate from the upper stage about an hour after launch. Stable communication with the spacecraft is expected by about 19 minutes after separation from the rocket, but it could take somewhat longer.<\/p>\n About three hours after launch, Europa Clipper will deploy its pair of massive solar arrays, one at a time, and direct them at the Sun.<\/p>\n Mission controllers will then begin to reconfigure the spacecraft into its planned operating mode. The ensuing three months of initial checkout include a commissioning phase to confirm that all hardware and software is operating as expected.<\/p>\n While Europa Clipper is not a life-detection mission, it will tell us whether Europa is a promising place to pursue an answer to the fundamental question about our solar system and beyond: Are we alone?<\/p>\n Scientists suspect that the ingredients for life \u2014 water, chemistry, and energy \u2014 could exist at the moon Europa right now. Previous missions have found strong evidence of an ocean beneath the moon\u2019s thick icy crust, potentially with twice as much liquid water as all of Earth\u2019s oceans combined. Europa may be home to organic compounds, which are essential chemical building blocks for life. Europa Clipper will help scientists confirm whether organics are there, and also help them look for evidence of energy sources under the moon\u2019s surface.<\/p>\nLaunch Sequences<\/h3>\n
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