NASA Begins Construction of Europa Clipper, Launch in 2024 by SpaceX

NASA started constructing their latest spacecraft called Europa Clipper. The vehicle, which measures the size of an SUV, will go beyond the borders of the planet Jupiter as part of a large investigation of one of the planet's moons. The launch of the mission is expected to commence in October 2024.

Europa Clipper to Jupiter's Moon

The space agency said that the Europa Clipper's assembly is currently at work at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), located at South California's La Canada Flintridge.

Jupiter's moon Europa is the main subject of the vehicle and the observation mediums it will carry aboard. The moon is known to have an icy composition and a vast body of ocean as its subsurface. The orb has a total diameter of over 3,000 kilometers, which equates to about 90 percent the size of Earth's lunar companion.

Europa, even though it is a moon, contains liquid water. Across the solar system, it is among the few that are confirmed to have the composition. The most popular water containers alongside Europa are the planet Saturn's moon Enceladus, and Earth.

The Europa Clipper will be equipped with solar arrays that stretch to the size of a basketball court. The instrument will serve as the energy collector of the vehicle for power along the trip, reports NASA.

Europa Clipper's main body consists of a propulsion module that scales to 10 feet of height. The part's design and systems were developed by the experts from the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Maryland.

NASA said that the corresponding pieces for the construction of the Europa Clipper are already shipping from across various manufacturers located in the United States and Europe. The flight hardware, as well as each of the nine major equipment for the spacecraft, will be completed later this year.

Clipper's Launch Aboard SpaceX Falcon Heavy

Elon Musk's SpaceX will conduct that launch service for the mission in 2024. The investigation will be carried out through a series of flybys on Jupiter's moon.

Falcon Heavy is the rocket that will be utilized for the flight. The launch will commence from Florida's Kennedy Space Center.

NASA's contract with SpaceX for Europa Clipper's launch service amounts to a staggering $178 dollars, DailyMail reports.

The spacecraft's main interests are collecting images of Europa's surface, observation of the contents hidden on it, and analysis of the current geological activities across the orb.

Part of the study is the measurement of Europa's slushy ice subsurface, as well as the salinity and depth of its water bodies.

NASA theorizes that the particular moon of Jupiter holds about twice the total volume of water on our planet.

One of the anticipated achievements of the Europa Clipper is to confirm whether the moon houses a life that has intelligence comparable to an octopus, as suggested by Liverpool Hope University chancellor Monica Grady.

NASA did not release any other details regarding mission bidders aside from SpaceX, an event that shows the US space agency's confidence in the capability of Elon Musk's firm.

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