ESA's JUICE mission will soon blast into outer space to find life on Jupiter's moons.
Scientists say the Jovian moon Amalthea, pictured in this undated artist's concept with the Galileo spacecraft, may be full of holes. NASA's Galileo spacecraft discovered the potato-shaped moon orbiting Jupiter and, in a recent flyby, found that the moon may be a collection of boulders rather than a solid body.
While NASA and other space organizations focus on Venus and Mars, the European Space Agency decided to put its efforts into the natural satellites of the gas giant.
ESA will use its Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer to observe any sign of life on Jupiter's icy lunar neighbors. Here's what we know so far about the upcoming ESA JUICE mission.
ESA JUICE Mission: What We Know So Far
Sky News' latest report shows that ESA will launch its JUICE mission on Thursday, April 13, at 1:15 p.m. U.K. time.
The logo of the European Space Agency (ESA) is seen in the main control room of the European Space Operation Centre in Darmstadt, western Germany, on April 12, 2022. - The new Space Safety Centre will monitor satellite data that record the space weather and the future ESA Mission Vigil. (Photo by ANDRE PAIN / AFP)
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The lunar explorer will be launched by the Ariane 5 rocket from ESA's spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
The JUICE spacecraft will be active for around eight years, doing flybys of Earth and Venus as it tries to reach Jupiter.
JUICE's intrepid engineering team was tasked to work on solar cells that can operate in super dark conditions. Thanks to their efforts, the JUICE spacecraft can perform efficiently once it reaches Jupiter's icy moons.
Aside from advanced solar cells, ESA will also rely on remote sensing and geophysical tools integrated into the JUICE craft.
Once the JUICE mission is launched, ESA expects it to reach Jupiter's region by 2031 or later.
How to Watch ESA Juice Launch
On its official website, ESA confirmed that fans could watch live streams of its upcoming JUICE launch. Interested viewers can go to the ESA Web TV or visit the official YouTube channel of the European Space Agency.
Aside from this, a French livestream version on Web TV channel two will also be provided. You can click this link to learn more details.
In other stories, Elon Musk said that the SpaceX Starship is waiting for the launch license. We also reported about the 50th orbit made by the NASA Juno mission around Jupiter.
For more news updates about ESA and its upcoming space missions, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.
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