Category: Europa Clipper

NASA, SpaceX Complete Europa Clipper Mission’s Launch Readiness Review

NASA will host a prelaunch media teleconference at 5 p.m. EDT Sunday to discuss the agency’s Europa Clipper mission. Earlier in the day, NASA and SpaceX completed a launch readiness review, resulting in a “go” for launch of the spacecraft that will conduct a detailed science investigation of Jupiter’s icy moon Europa.

Coverage of the prelaunch teleconference will stream live on the agency’s website.

Participants include:

  • NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free
  • Sandra Connelly, deputy associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
  • Jordan Evans, project manager, Europa Clipper, NASA JPL
  • Tim Dunn, launch director, NASA’s Launch Services Program
  • Julianna Scheiman, director, NASA Science Missions, SpaceX
  • Mike McAleenan, launch weather officer, 45th Weather Squadron, U.S. Space Force Space Launch Delta 45

Meteorologists with the U.S. Space Force’s Space Launch Delta 45 Weather Squadron are predicting a 95% chance of favorable weather conditions for launch, which is targeting 12:06 p.m. EDT on Monday, Oct. 14, from Launch Complex 39A.

To learn more about the Europa Clipper mission, visit:

https://science.nasa.gov/mission/europa-clipper 

Join the conversation and get updates from these accounts:

X: @NASA, @EuropaClipper, @NASASolarSystem, @NASAJPL, @NASAKennedy, @NASA_LSP
Facebook: NASA, NASA’s Europa Clipper, NASA’s JPL, NASA’s Launch Services Program
Instagram: @NASA, @nasasolarsystem, @NASAKennedy, @NASAJPL

NASA, SpaceX Set Launch Readiness Review for Europa Clipper Mission

NASA and SpaceX are moving forward with plans to conduct a Launch Readiness Review at 1 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 13, ahead of a targeted launch for the agency’s Europa Clipper mission no earlier than Monday, Oct. 14. Teams stood down from a potential launch opportunity on Oct. 13, to double-check technical readiness of the Falcon Heavy rocket, as well as continued assessments for launch readiness following Hurricane Milton.

NASA issued an updated media advisory late Saturday with coverage details for prelaunch and launch activities.

NASA Begins Post-Hurricane Milton Assessments at Kennedy

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida remains closed as Hurricane Milton moves off the coast.

The safety of everyone impacted by the storm remains our top priority as the agency begins the assessment and recovery process from the hurricane.

Once the winds subsided to a safe level, the center’s Ride Out Team and engineering teams began initial checkouts to ensure bridges are safe and useable. Later, a larger assessment team will thoroughly check the entire center.

The agency’s Europa Clipper launch team will schedule an official launch date when teams from NASA and SpaceX are able to perform their assessments, and confirm it’s safe to launch. Teams are working to protect launch opportunities no earlier than Sunday, Oct. 13. Clipper has launch opportunities through Wednesday, Nov. 6.

NASA will provide more information on Clipper launch opportunities as it becomes available.

NASA, SpaceX Secure Europa Clipper Ahead of Hurricane

NASA and SpaceX are standing down from the Thursday, Oct. 10, launch attempt of the agency’s Europa Clipper mission due to anticipated hurricane conditions in the area. Hurricane Milton is expected to move from the Gulf of Mexico this week moving east to the Space Coast. High winds and heavy rain are expected in the Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island regions on Florida’s east coast. Launch teams have secured NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft in SpaceX’s hangar at Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of the severe weather, and the center began hurricane preparations Sunday.

“The safety of launch team personnel is our highest priority, and all precautions will be taken to protect the Europa Clipper spacecraft,” said Tim Dunn, senior launch director at NASA’s Launch Services Program.

On Oct. 4, workers transported NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft from the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center to the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in the hangar as part of final launch preparations ahead of its journey to Jupiter’s icy moon. While Europa Clipper’s launch period opens Oct. 10, the window provides launch opportunities until Wednesday, Nov. 6.

Once the storm passes, recovery teams will assess the safety of the spaceport before personnel return to work. Then launch teams will assess the launch processing facilities for damage from the storm.

“Once we have the ‘all-clear’ followed by facility assessment and any recovery actions, we will determine the next launch opportunity for this NASA flagship mission,” said Dunn.

NASA’s Europa Clipper Spacecraft Transported to Hangar

On Friday, Oct. 4, workers transported NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft to the SpaceX hangar at Launch Complex 39A on the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in preparation for launch.

Earlier in the week, technicians completed the encapsulation of the spacecraft inside a payload fairing at the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on NASA Kennedy. The fairings will protect the spacecraft from aerodynamic pressure and heat during launch before eventually separating and falling back to Earth.

Soon, technicians will mate the spacecraft to a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in preparation for launch, roll the rocket to the launch pad, and raise it to a vertical position ahead of liftoff. Europa Clipper’s launch period opens at 12:31 p.m. EDT Thursday, Oct. 10.

The largest spacecraft NASA has ever built for a planetary mission, robotic solar-powered Europa Clipper will conduct the first detailed investigations of Jupiter’s icy moon, Europa. The spacecraft will orbit Jupiter and make nearly 50 flybys of Europa to determine whether there are places below Europa’s surface that could support life.

Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The main spacecraft body was designed by APL in collaboration with NASA JPL and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The Planetary Missions Program Office at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, executes program management of the Europa Clipper mission. NASA’s Launch Services Program, based at Kennedy, manages the launch service for the Europa Clipper spacecraft. 

To learn more about the Europa Clipper mission, visit: 

https://science.nasa.gov/mission/europa-clipper 

Join the conversation and get updates from these accounts:  

X: @NASA, @EuropaClipper, @NASASolarSystem, @NASAJPL, @NASAKennedy, @NASA_LSP
Facebook: NASA, NASA’s Europa Clipper, NASA’s JPL, NASA’s Launch Services Program
Instagram: @NASA, @nasasolarsystem, @NASAKennedy, @NASAJPL 

Teams Hold Flight Readiness Review for NASA’s Europa Clipper

Technicians encapsulated NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside payload fairings on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Technicians encapsulated NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside payload fairings on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Photo credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky

NASA, SpaceX, and Europa Clipper mission managers met Friday, Oct. 4, to conduct a Flight Readiness Review at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During the review, teams provided an update on the mission’s status and certified its readiness to initiate final launch preparation activities. Europa Clipper will launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy.

Europa Clipper’s main science goal is to determine whether there are places below the surface of Jupiter’s icy moon, Europa, that could support life. The mission’s main science objectives are to understand the nature of Europa’s ice shell and the ocean beneath it, along with the moon’s composition and geology. This detailed exploration of Europa will help scientists better understand the astrobiological potential for habitable worlds beyond our planet.

Upon reaching its destination in 2030, Europa Clipper will perform dozens of close flybys of Jupiter’s moon Europa, gathering detailed measurements to investigate the moon. The spacecraft, in orbit around Jupiter, will make closest-approach flybys at altitudes as low as 16 miles (25 kilometers) above the surface, soaring over a different location during each flyby to scan nearly the entire moon.

Europa Clipper’s launch period opens at 12:31 p.m. EDT Thursday, Oct. 10.

To learn more about the Europa Clipper mission, visit:

https://science.nasa.gov/mission/europa-clipper 

NASA’s Europa Clipper Mated to Payload Adapter, Encapsulated

Technicians encapsulated NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside payload fairings on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The fairings will protect the spacecraft during launch as it begins its journey to explore Jupiter’s icy moon, Europa. The mission will help scientists determine if the moon could support life. NASA and SpaceX are targeting launch at 12:31 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Technicians encapsulated NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside payload fairings on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The fairings will protect the spacecraft during launch as it begins its journey to explore Jupiter’s icy moon, Europa. Photo credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky

NASA and SpaceX technicians recently completed several important milestones as they prepare for the upcoming launch of the agency’s Europa Clipper spacecraft to explore Jupiter’s icy moon Europa.

Technicians encapsulated NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside payload fairings on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The fairings will protect the spacecraft during launch as it begins its journey to explore Jupiter’s icy moon, Europa. The mission will help scientists determine if the moon could support life. NASA and SpaceX are targeting launch at 12:31 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Technicians encapsulated NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside payload fairings on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA/Ben Smegelsky

First, teams connected the Europa Clipper spacecraft to the payload adapter on Thursday, Sept. 26, inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. With Europa Clipper securely attached to the payload adapter, the team then connected the combined assembly to the payload attach fitting on Monday, Sept. 30. These operations will enable the spacecraft to join with the rocket in the coming days.

Next, teams detached various coverings that shielded sensitive parts of the spacecraft during processing. Finally, on Wednesday, Oct. 2, teams encapsulated the spacecraft inside payload fairings, which will protect the spacecraft from aerodynamic pressure and heat during launch. After liftoff, the fairings will separate once the rocket’s second stage climbs high enough, approximately 5 minutes into the flight, and the fairings will return to Earth where SpaceX plans to recover them

NASA is targeting Thursday, Oct. 10, for launching Europa Clipper on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy. This will start a years-long journey to Jupiter, where it will help scientists determine if the enigmatic moon has conditions suitable to support life.

To learn more about the Europa Clipper mission, visit:

https://science.nasa.gov/mission/europa-clipper 

Join the conversation and get updates from these accounts:

X: @NASA, @EuropaClipper, @NASASolarSystem, @NASAJPL, @NASAKennedy, @NASA_LSP
Facebook: NASA, NASA’s Europa Clipper, NASA’s JPL, NASA’s Launch Services Program
Instagram: @NASA, @nasasolarsystem, @NASAKennedy, @NASAJPL

Fueling Complete on NASA’s Europa Clipper Spacecraft

Technicians work to complete operations before propellant load occurs ahead of launch for NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2024. Europa could have all the “ingredients” for life as we know it: water, organics, chemical energy, and stability. Europa Clipper’s launch period opens on October 10, 2024.
This image shows technicians working to complete operations prior to propellant load for NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2024. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

Technicians completed loading propellants in the agency’s Europa Clipper spacecraft on Sunday, Sept. 22, inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Housed in the largest spacecraft NASA has ever built for a planetary mission, Europa Clipper’s propulsion module is an aluminum cylinder 10 feet (3 meters) long and 5 feet (1.5 meters) wide, and it holds the spacecraft’s array of 24 engines and 6067.6 pounds (2,752.2 kilograms) of propellant in two propulsion tanks, as well as the spacecraft’s helium pressurant tanks. The fuel and oxidizer held by the tanks will flow to the 24 engines, creating a controlled chemical reaction to produce thrust in space during its journey to determine whether there are places below the surface of Jupiter’s icy moon, Europa, that could support life.

After launch, the spacecraft plans to fly by Mars in February 2025, then back by Earth in December 2026, using the gravity of each planet to increase its momentum. With help of these “gravity assists,” Europa Clipper will achieve the velocity needed to reach Jupiter in April 2030.

NASA is targeting launch on Thursday, Oct. 10, aboard a Space X Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA Kennedy’s historic Launch Complex 39A.

Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The main spacecraft body was designed by APL in collaboration with NASA JPL and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The Planetary Missions Program Office at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, executes program management of the Europa Clipper mission. NASA’s Launch Services Program, based at Kennedy, manages the launch service for the Europa Clipper spacecraft.

To learn more about the Europa Clipper mission, visit:

https://science.nasa.gov/mission/europa-clipper

Join the conversation and get updates from these accounts:

X: @NASA, @EuropaClipper, @NASASolarSystem, @NASAJPL, @NASAKennedy, @NASA_LSP
Facebook: NASA, NASA’s Europa Clipper, NASA’s JPL, NASA’s Launch Services Program
Instagram: @NASA, @nasasolarsystem, @NASAKennedy, @NASAJPL

NASA’s Europa Clipper Mission Moving Toward October Launch Date

NASA’s Europa Clipper mission remains on track, with a launch period opening on Thursday, Oct. 10. The next major milestone for Clipper is Key Decision Point E on Monday, Sept. 9, in which the agency will decide whether the project is ready to proceed to launch and mission operations. NASA will provide more information at a mission overview and media briefing targeted for that same week.

The Europa Clipper mission team recently conducted extensive testing and analysis of transistors that help control the flow of electricity on the spacecraft. Analysis of the results suggests the transistors can support the baseline mission.