Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) is Europe's Next Large Science Mission

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JUICE is Europe's next large science mission
European Space Agency
2 May 2012

PR 13 2012 - Jupiter's icy moons are the focus of Europe's next large
science mission, ESA announced today.

The Jupiter Icy moons Explorer - JUICE - was selected over two other
candidates: NGO, the New Gravitational wave Observatory, to hunt for
gravitational waves, and ATHENA, the Advanced Telescope for High-Energy
Astrophysics.

JUICE is the first Large-class mission chosen as part of ESA's Cosmic
Vision 2015-2025 programme.

It will be launched in 2022 from Europe's spaceport in Kourou, French
Guiana, on an Ariane 5, arriving at Jupiter in 2030 to spend at least
three years making detailed observations.

Jupiter's diverse Galilean moons - volcanic Io, icy Europa and rock-ice
Ganymede and Callisto - make the jovian system a miniature Solar System
in its own right.

With Europa, Ganymede and Callisto all thought to host internal oceans,
the mission will study the moons as potential habitats for life,
addressing two key themes of Cosmic Vision: what are the conditions for
planet formation and the emergence of life, and how does the Solar
System work?

JUICE will continuously observe Jupiter's atmosphere and magnetosphere,
and the interaction of the Galilean moons with the gas giant planet.

It will visit Callisto, the most heavily cratered object in the Solar
System, and will twice fly by Europa. JUICE will make the first
measurements of the thickness of Europa's icy crust and will identify
candidate sites for future in situ exploration.

The spacecraft will finally enter orbit around Ganymede in 2032, where
it will study the icy surface and internal structure of the moon,
including its subsurface ocean.

Ganymede is the only moon in the Solar System known to generate its own
magnetic field, and JUICE will observe the unique magnetic and plasma
interactions with Jupiter's magnetosphere in detail.

"Jupiter is the archetype for the giant planets of the Solar System and
for many giant planets being found around other stars," says Prof.
Alvaro Giménez Cañete, ESA's Director of Science and Robotic Exploration.

"JUICE will give us better insight into how gas giants and their
orbiting worlds form, and their potential for hosting life."

"The selection process has been challenging given the excellent quality
of the three mission candidates, and I would like to thank the Space
Science Advisory Committee for its hard work and for having carried out
this very challenging process in a very rigorous way," says the Chair of
ESA’s Science Programme Committee, Dr Richard Bonneville.

Today's announcement is the culmination of a process started in 2004
when ESA consulted the wider scientific community to set Europe's goals
for space exploration in the coming decade.

The resulting Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 programme identified four
scientific aims. What are the conditions for life and planetary
formation? How does the Solar System work? What are the fundamental laws
of the Universe? How did the Universe begin and what is it made of?

In 2007, a "Call for Missions" was issued around these aims and resulted
in a number of L-class missions being considered.

"It was a difficult decision to choose one mission from three excellent
candidates. All three would produce world-class science and put Europe
at the forefront of space research," says Prof. Gimenez Canete.

"JUICE is a necessary step for the future exploration of our outer Solar
System."

The high scientific value of both NGO and ATHENA was also recognised by
the Science Programme Committee in today's decision, and technology
activities are planned to continue, enabling the missions to be
considered as candidates for future launch opportunities. A second Call
for Large Missions is expected in 2013.

For further information, please contact:

ESA Media Relations Office
Communication Department
Tel: + 33 1 53 69 72 99
Fax: + 33 1 53 69 76 90
Email: me...@esa.int