Space & Astronomy
Europa mission now one step closer to reality
By T.K. Randall
June 18, 2015 · 7 comments
Could Europa's oceans be home to alien life ? Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA has announced that it has reached a major new milestone in its upcoming mission to explore Europa.
Widely considered to be the best place in the solar system to look for evidence of alien life, Jupiter's moon Europa is set to become the destination of an ambitious new mission that will see a spacecraft perform multiple flybys as it attempts to determine whether or not anything could be living there.
Now following the completion of its first major review the mission has moved on to its next phase.
"Today we’re taking an exciting step from concept to mission, in our quest to find signs of life beyond Earth," said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.
"Observations of Europa have provided us with tantalizing clues over the last two decades, and the time has come to seek answers to one of humanity’s most profound questions."
When it arrives at Europa the new spacecraft will map the surface using high resolution cameras and investigate the composition and structure of both its interior and external icy shell.
"It’s a great day for science," said Europa program executive Joan Salute.
"We are thrilled to pass the first major milestone in the lifecycle of a mission that will ultimately inform us on the habitability of Europa."
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