What is Europa Clipper Mission?

About Europa Clipper Mission:

• It is a NASA mission to study Jupiter's icy moon Europa.
• The mission will place a spacecraft in orbit around Jupiter in order to perform a detailed investigation of Europa.
• The first NASA spacecraft dedicated to studying an ocean world beyond Earth, Europa Clipper aims to find out if the ice-encased moon Europa could be habitable.
  • Europa shows strong evidence for an ocean of liquid water beneath its icy crust. 
• The spacecraft extends 100 feet (30.5 meters) from one end to the other and about 58 feet (17.6 meters) across. 
  • It is the largest spacecraft NASA has ever developed for a planetary mission. 
• Europa Clipper will orbit Jupiter and conduct 49 close flybys of the moon to gather data needed to determine whether there are places below its thick frozen crust that could support life.
• The spacecraft carries nine science instruments and a gravity experiment that uses the telecommunications system.
• In order to obtain the best science during each flyby, all the science instruments will operate simultaneously on every pass. Scientists will then layer the data together to paint a full picture of the moon.
• The spacecraft has large solar arrays to collect enough light for its power needs as it operates in the Jupiter system.

Q1: What is a solar array?

A solar array is a group of solar panels wired together to create an electrical power output. You combine a solar array with other components, such as an inverter and battery, to complete a solar system.

Source: Europa Clipper mission set to explore Jupiter’s ocean moon; here’s all you need to know