Kourou (AFP) April 14, 2023
The European Space Agency's JUICE mission to explore Jupiter's icy, ocean-bearing moons has blasted off, a day after the first launch attempt was called off due to the threat of lightning. More to comerana at 1214 GMT, 30 seconds earlier than Thursday's aborted effort. If successful, the uncrewed, six-tonne spacecraft will leave Earth orbit for on an eight-year journey through the Solar System aimi

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ESA’s latest interplanetary mission, Juice, lifted off on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, at 14:14 CEST on 14 April 2023 to begin its eight-year journey to Jupiter, where it will study in detail the gas giant planet’s three large ocean-bearing moons: Ganymede, Callisto and Europa. 

Juice – JUpiter ICy moons Explorer – is humankind’s next bold mission to the outer Solar System. This ambitious mission will characterise Ganymede, Callisto and Europa with a powerful suite of remote sensing, geophysical and in situ instruments to discover more about these compelling destinations as potential habitats for past or present

Week in images: 10-14 April 2023

Discover our week through the lens

ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) lifted off on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana at 14:14 CEST on 14 April. The successful launch marks the beginning of an ambitious voyage to uncover the secrets of the ocean worlds around giant planet Jupiter.

Pasadena CA (JPL) Apr 14, 2023
Years in the making, a major software update that has been installed on NASA's Curiosity rover will enable the Mars robot to drive faster and reduce wear and tear on its wheels. Those are just two of about 180 changes implemented during the update, which required the team to put Curiosity's science and imaging operations on hold between April 3 and April 7. "The flight software is essentia

San Antonio TX (SPX) Apr 14, 2023
Some of the asteroids NASA's Lucy mission will visit are still more than 330 million miles (530 million kilometers) away from the spacecraft, which is more than three times the average distance between Earth and the Sun. But despite the great distance and the comparatively small sizes of these asteroids, Lucy caught views of four of them recently. From March 25 to 27, 2023, Lucy used its h

Orlando FL (SPX) Apr 14, 2023
AUniversity of Central Florida researcher will be using the newly constructed Two-meter Twin Telescope (TTT) in the Canary Islands, Spain, to study metal-rich M-type asteroids. The work can inform the study of asteroids like 16 Psyche, an M-type, or metal, asteroid NASA is launching a mission in October 2023 to visit. The M-type asteroids offer both high concentrations of metals that

New York NY (SPX) Apr 13, 2023
Remarkable advances in private launch capability and space-based technologies are creating vast new opportunities for businesses and investors in low-Earth orbit - and beyond. A new book by Space Capital founder and managing partner Chad Anderson plumbs the depths of these new opportunities, while also explaining the challenges and risks that need to be considered. "The Space Economy: Capi

Pasadena CA (JPL) Apr 14, 2023
The history-making rotorcraft has recently been negotiating some of the most hazardous terrain it's encountered on the Red Planet. NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter has completed its 50th flight on Mars. The first aircraft on another world reached the half-century mark on April 13, traveling over 1,057.09 feet (322.2 meters) in 145.7 seconds. The helicopter also achieved a new altitude reco

San Antonio TX (SPX) Apr 13, 2023
NASA's Juno mission completed its 50th close pass by Jupiter on April 8, 2023. Since the spacecraft arrived at the giant planet in 2016, its JunoCam imager has captured spectacular views of Jupiter, and its large moons Ganymede, Europa, and Io. Many of those images were processed by volunteers called citizen scientists. To mark the 50th close pass, NASA teamed up with Google Arts and Cultu