In a maiden bid to explore Europa, the moon of the biggest planet of our solar system, Jupiter, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched the Europa Clipper spacecraft aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket on Monday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The liftoff that was initially scheduled for October 10, was delayed by Hurricane Milton. Upon receiving a signal from the spacecraft, NASA has reported that the Europa Clipper had successfully entered the orbit as well.
About the Europa Clipper: Key features
Europa Clipper is NASA’s maiden spacecraft which is designed to study the massive ocean hidden beneath the ice sheet. The spacecraft particularly aims to ascertain whether the moon could be habitable for life as we know it. As per reports, the moon’s ocean is expected to contain twice as much liquid water as Earth’s oceans.
According to Jenny Kampmeier, a science systems engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, “This is the start of our journey of discovery. Everything we’re going to learn from Europa, it’s just amazing. All scientific disciplines can really gain something from this, and it’s going to change our understanding of our place in the universe if this is a world that could support life."
The spacecraft is driven by large solar arrays.
The spacecraft's instrumental repertoire includes nine instruments and a gravity experiment to investigate the ocean beneath Europa’s thick ice shell.
Europa Clipper carrying linguistic plate
In an unprecedented endeavor, Europa Clipper is carrying with it a metal linguistic plate made of tantalum metal along with a silicon microchip stenciled with more than 2.6 million names submitted by people around the world.
As per reports, the plate is also carrying a poem "In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa" by US Poet Laureate Ada Limón. Along with the spacecraft, a unique message recorded in Hindi and other languages has been sent.
As a symbol of connection between Earth and Europa, the linguistic plate showcases scripting of the word "water" in over 100 languages spoken on Earth including "paani" which is how water is pronounced in Hindi.
