The UK Space Agency funds one of the ten science instruments aboard the European Space Agency’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE), and it has contributed to the creation of two more.
JUICE will launch from Kourou in French Guiana on Friday 14 April at 1.14pm and will spend eight years going to the Jupiter system. It will fly by Earth and Venus along the route, using their gravitational fields to produce enough speed to reach Jupiter. The first lunar-Earth gravity assists manoeuvre will be one of these.
Michelle Donelan, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology, stated:
The UK Space Agency has invested approximately £9 million in the JUICE mission to investigate Jupiter and its moons.” The use of UK technology on the spacecraft demonstrates how our world-class universities and research institutes are unlocking the door to deep space exploration.
“I want the UK’s space sector to thrive in the future and to promote STEM learning for the next generation.” It is critical that we push the boundaries of research, innovation, and technology across the country in order to sustain future jobs.”
JUICE will circle Jupiter and fly past moons Ganymede, Europa, and Callisto when it arrives in 2031, conducting observations and measurements as it studies the Jovian system as a model for gas giants elsewhere in the universe.
JUICE will finally enter orbit around Ganymede in December 2034, becoming the first spacecraft to orbit a moon other than Earth’s. The expedition will examine the huge ocean that scientists believe lies beneath Ganymede’s frozen shell, looking for signs of habitability.
Dr Caroline Harper, the UK Space Agency’s Head of Space Science, stated:
The launch of JUICE marks the culmination of years of hard work and collaboration by scientists, engineers, and space agencies from around the world, but the journey is far from over.
“We are looking forward to following the spacecraft on its eight-year journey to Jupiter and then studying the planet and its moons with specialised UK-developed science instruments.”
“In the UK, we have a large community of research experts who are looking forward to the data that JUICE will provide.” We aim to learn more about the nature of gas giants in space and their icy moons using this information, taking us one step closer to comprehending the evolution of the Universe.”
The UK Space Agency contributed £9 million to the JUICE science payload, which includes three essential equipment.
J-MAG (UK-led magnetometer) – Development headed by Imperial College London, with contributions from the University of Leicester on radiation-hardness and mechanical design.
JANUS (Italian-led optical camera system) – Imaging sensors created in the UK by Teledyne-e2v and tested, calibrated, and defined by Open University.
PEP (Swedish-led particle environment package) – University College London provided solid-state detectors, and Aberystwyth University contributed radiation design for the instrument suite.
Professor Michele Dougherty, Principal Investigator for the J-MAG instrument at Imperial College London, has been involved in JUICE even before it was selected by ESA in 2014 as the first Large Class mission in its Cosmic Vision Science Programme.
Professor Michele Dougherty, Head of Physics at Imperial College London, stated:
“We’re almost looking inside these worlds with our instrument’s measurements.” However, because the signals we’re trying to detect are so little, what we’re doing is exceedingly tough. It’s like trying to find a needle in a haystack where the needles are constantly shifting shape and colour. But we believe the outcomes will be stunning.
“Because space missions are long and slow, this launch only marks the halfway point of this one – because we first thought about it 15 years ago, and we’ll get the last data in 15 years.” But I can’t wait for launch since it will be our next milestone – we’ll be on our journey to Jupiter.”
JUICE is a collaboration between ESA, NASA, Japan’s space agency, and Israel’s space agency that will look at two important themes from ESA’s Cosmic Vision 2015-2025: What are the conditions for the formation of planets and the birth of life? And how does the Solar System function?
After taking off from Kourou in French Guiana on an Ariane 5 launch vehicle, it is expected to arrive at Jupiter in July 2031 and complete 35 icy moon flybys before arriving at Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon, in December 2034.
JUICE’s eight-year journey will be productive; it will pass by Venus to test and calibrate its equipment, collect data, and take use of the gravity assist to save fuel. Meanwhile, scientists on the ground will seek to complete software and data modelling in time for the spacecraft’s arrival at Jupiter.
According to Chiaki Crews, Research Fellow at the Open University:
“The JUICE mission seeks to answer a variety of intriguing questions, including whether the ocean worlds beneath Jupiter’s icy moons could potentially harbour life.” A camera is one of several tools required to conduct extensive scientific observations to help answer such concerns.
“For several years, our Open University team has been testing and optimising a new image sensor for JUICE’s scientific camera, JANUS.” A big part of our job was to irradiate test sensors with high levels of radiation, similar to what the JUICE mission is projected to face, to ensure that JANUS can still acquire photographs without too much deterioration.
“We are now very much looking forward to watching the launch, though we will have to wait several years before we see the first images returned from Jupiter’s moons.”
Professor Geraint Jones of the Mullard Space Science Laboratory at University College London stated:
“It’s exciting to see JUICE, which is carrying the PEP instrument that we helped develop, getting closer to launch.” We’re excited to get data from our sensors on the’soup’ of ions, electrons, and atoms that surrounds Jupiter and its moons.
“This data will help us understand how particles around Jupiter reach such high energies, which could be fatal to an astronaut.” We are excited that the mission will shed new information on worlds that may or may not be habitable.”
Professor Emma Bunce, Director of the University of Leicester’s Institute for Space, stated:
“The JUICE mission is the logical next step in our exploration of potentially habitable worlds in our solar system.” The JUICE spacecraft will accomplish this through repeated flybys of Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, as well as a dedicated orbit around Ganymede near the end of the mission.
“We are so excited that the JUICE mission is finally ready to launch and begin its long journey to the Jupiter system after many years of hard work from science, engineering, and industry teams.” We will be anxiously awaiting the great data that we anticipate receiving in 2031, and we are convinced that it will be well worth the wait!”
According to Professor Manuel Grande, Head of Solar System Physics at Aberystwyth University’s Department of Physics:
“The extreme radiation environment would interfere with the spacecraft’s instrumentation and swamp any readings when visiting Jupiter’s icy moons, particularly Europa.”
“The innovative design of the shielding, pioneered at Aberystwyth, allows for the avoidance of radiation effects on readings and the detection of organic molecules in the vicinity of Europa, which is perhaps the most likely site for life in our Solar System after our own Earth.”
Teledyne e2v Vice President Daniel Waller stated:
The launch of JUICE with the JANUS optical camera onboard is a watershed moment in this critical mission.” This is the second complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor sensor from our Chelmsford facility to be launched into orbit in recent months. This sensor will provide us with images of Jupiter’s frozen moons as well as its environment, boosting our understanding of other planets in our solar system.”
