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Europa's Ocean May Have An Earthlike Chemical Balance – NASA's Europa Clipper
NASA's Hubble Spots Possible Water Plumes Erupting on Jupiter's Moon Europa

Jupiter’s moon Europa is considered one of the most promising places in the solar system to search for signs of present-day life, and a new NASA mission to explore this potential is moving forward from concept review to development.

All Systems Go for NASA's Mission to Jupiter Moon Europa

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Agenor Linea on Europa 

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Gravity/Radio Science

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Poem by U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón Will Ride to Europa on NASA Spacecraft

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On the Path Towards Unprecedented Science – NASA's Europa Clipper
It will carry fuel and oxidizer sufficient to change Europa Clipper’s velocity by about 3,600 miles per hour (5,800 kilometers per hour). While this is a large amount and a critically important capability, it represents about five percent of the velocity change needed to accomplish this mission. The bulk of the velocity change necessary to adjust trajectories once in Jupiter orbit will come from gravitational flybys of Jovian moons as planned. Given the overall size of the tanks, the propulsion subsystem is designed as part of a “propulsion module” that includes the solar arrays and radiation monitors.

Europa Clipper’s bowl-shaped high-gain antenna faces down in this image. This radio dish will allow ground controllers to send and receive commands and data between Earth and the spacecraft in Jupiter orbit — more than one million times farther from Earth than the International Space Station orbits. Credit: NASA

The telecom subsystem is the link between Europa Clipper and Earth. It provides command reception and science and engineering data downlink. It also provides interplanetary navigation data. Through the high gain antenna (HGA), Europa Clipper will downlink on the order of several gigabytes of science data per typical Earth antenna tracking session, enough data to fill a smartphone in about a week. The HGA also serves as a sunshade when Europa Clipper is still relatively close to the Sun, while en route to the Jupiter system. With respect to its gravity science role, scientists will use the radio signals exchanged between the telecom sub-system aboard the spacecraft and NASA's Deep Space Network to detect subtle variations in the gravitational attraction between Europa and Europa Clipper. The variations reflect details of Europa’s internal mass distribution, allowing us to learn about Europa’s interior structure.

The Europa Clipper mission intends to answer the big question: Is Europa habitable? This question encompasses hypotheses about the nature of water, chemistry, and energy exchange at Europa, which in turn leads to these additional major questions to be answered: How deep and salty is the ocean? How thick is the ice shell? How active is the ice shell? Are there plumes, and if so, what is in the plumes?
Participate – NASA's Europa Clipper
A gantlet of tests prepared the spacecraft for its challenging trip to the Jupiter system, where it will explore the icy moon Europa and its subsurface ocean.

NASA's Europa Clipper Survives and Thrives in ‘Outer Space' on Earth

When it launches in October, NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft will carry a richly layered dispatch that includes more than 2.6 million names submitted by the public.

NASA Unveils Design for Message Heading to Jupiter's Moon Europa

Cuando quedan menos de nueve meses en la cuenta regresiva para su lanzamiento, la misión Europa Clipper de la NASA ha superado un hito importante: sus instrumentos científicos han sido incorporados a la enorme nave espacial, que es ensamblada en el Laboratorio de Propulsión a Chorro (JPL, por sus siglas en inglés) de la NASA en el sur de California.

Todos los instrumentos científicos están a bordo para la misión Europa Clipper

The science performed by the complex suite of instruments recently added to the spacecraft will reveal whether Jupiter’s moon Europa has conditions that could support life.

Poised for Science: NASA's Europa Clipper Instruments Are All Aboard

Six weeks remain for you to add your name to a microchip that will ride aboard the spacecraft.

Time Is Running Out to Add Your Name to NASA's Europa Clipper 

Astronomers using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have identified carbon dioxide in a specific region on the icy surface of Europa.

NASA's Webb Finds Carbon Source on Surface of Jupiter's Moon Europa

La NASA ha lanzado un nuevo sitio web en español para invitar al público a enviar sus nombres a bordo de Europa Clipper, una misión que iniciará su viaje a la luna de Júpiter Europa en octubre de 2024.

NASA invita a hispanohablantes a enviar sus nombres en Europa Clipper

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Europa Up Close | Why Europa – NASA's Europa Clipper
A full-scale prototype antenna, which at 10 feet tall is the same height as a standard basketball hoop, is in the Experimental Test Range (ETR) at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.

Europa Clipper High Gain Antenna Undergoes Testing at Langley

New comprehensive mapping of the radiation pummeling Jupiter’s icy moon Europa reveals where scientists should look -- and how deep they’ll have to go -- when searching for signs of habitability and biosignatures.

Radiation Maps of Europa: Key to Future Missions

New animation shows how “bands” and “grooves” in the icy surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa could transport subsurface water to the moon’s surface. 

Europa's Ocean Ascending

Scientists re-examining data from an old mission bring new insights to the tantalizing question of whether Jupiter’s moon Europa has the ingredients to support life.

Old Data Reveal New Evidence of Europa Plumes

NASA will host a Science Chat at 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. EDT Monday, May 14), to discuss the latest analysis of Jupiter’s moon Europa and its status as one of the most promising places in the solar system to search for life.

NASA Hosts Live Discussion about Europa Findings, Potential for Life

The Europa Clipper project team continues to grow as we move into more detailed design of the equipment, and it is gratifying to see such a geographically distributed team work well together. 

The Sextant: Europa Clipper Newsletter

This color-enhanced image of Jupiter and two of its largest moons – Io and Europa – was captured by NASA’s Juno spacecraft as it performed its eighth flyby of the gas giant planet.

Juno Observes Jupiter, Io and Europa

NASA's upcoming mission to investigate the habitability of Jupiter's icy moon Europa now has a formal name: Europa Clipper.

NASA Mission Named 'Europa Clipper'

A mission to examine the habitability of Jupiter's ocean-bearing moon Europa is taking one step closer to the launchpad, with the recent completion of a major NASA review.

NASA's Europa Flyby Mission Moves into Design Phase
On the Path Towards Unprecedented Science – NASA's Europa Clipper
The antenna is the narrow copper tube, held straight by several cables and a cross bar on the tower at right. In space, the copper tube will stick out straight on its own, but in Earth's gravity, the antenna requires supports to keep it straight for testing. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

As with ECM and the solar arrays, the REASON antennas will be stowed for launch, then deployed into operational configuration in the weeks after launch. Engineering teams are testing the antenna deployment systems here on Earth to ensure that REASON will unfurl smoothly and completely.
Deployment Sequence in 3…2…1

While much work remains, much has been accomplished during the past challenging year. Each step in fabrication and preparation brings us closer to what will be unprecedented science at Europa. We invite you to continue to follow the Europa Clipper mission, in eager anticipation and ultimate excitement of unprecedented discovery.

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Members of the media put on “bunny suits” on April 11, 2024, to see Europa Clipper up close at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.

Media Get Close-Up of NASA's Jupiter-Bound Europa Clipper

We're thrilled to announce that NASA's 'Message in a Bottle' campaign has been nominated for a #Webby Award! We need your help to win! Cast your vote for our nomination.

Vote for Us! 'Message in a Bottle' Nominated for a Webby

When it launches in October, NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft will carry a richly layered dispatch that includes more than 2.6 million names submitted by the public.

NASA Unveils Design for Message Heading to Jupiter's Moon Europa

The addition of a high-gain antenna will enable the agency’s Europa Clipper spacecraft – set to launch in October 2024 – to communicate with mission controllers hundreds of millions of miles away.

NASA's Europa Probe Gets a Hotline to Earth

The Europa Clipper magnetometer has completed its rigorous testing and calibration at JPL and is ready for integration onto the Europa Clipper spacecraft.

Europa Clipper's Magnetometer Testing is Complete, Ready for Integration

The short videos take audiences behind the scenes to learn more about how space missions come together.
Frequently Asked Questions | Message in a Bottle – NASA's Europa Clipper
Cuando quedan menos de nueve meses en la cuenta regresiva para su lanzamiento, la misión Europa Clipper de la NASA ha superado un hito importante: sus instrumentos científicos han sido incorporados a la enorme nave espacial, que es ensamblada en el Laboratorio de Propulsión a Chorro (JPL, por sus siglas en inglés) de la NASA en el sur de California.

Todos los instrumentos científicos están a bordo para la misión Europa Clipper

The science performed by the complex suite of instruments recently added to the spacecraft will reveal whether Jupiter’s moon Europa has conditions that could support life.

Poised for Science: NASA's Europa Clipper Instruments Are All Aboard

Six weeks remain for you to add your name to a microchip that will ride aboard the spacecraft.

Time Is Running Out to Add Your Name to NASA's Europa Clipper 

Astronomers using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have identified carbon dioxide in a specific region on the icy surface of Europa.

NASA's Webb Finds Carbon Source on Surface of Jupiter's Moon Europa

La NASA ha lanzado un nuevo sitio web en español para invitar al público a enviar sus nombres a bordo de Europa Clipper, una misión que iniciará su viaje a la luna de Júpiter Europa en octubre de 2024.

NASA invita a hispanohablantes a enviar sus nombres en Europa Clipper

The addition of a high-gain antenna will enable the agency’s Europa Clipper spacecraft – set to launch in October 2024 – to communicate with mission controllers hundreds of millions of miles away.

NASA's Europa Probe Gets a Hotline to Earth

Members of the public are invited to add their names to an original poem dedicated to NASA’s Europa Clipper mission.

NASA Invites Public to Sign Poem That Will Fly Aboard Europa Clipper

The short videos take audiences behind the scenes to learn more about how space missions come together.

New Video Series Captures Team Working on NASA's Europa Clipper
On the Path Towards Unprecedented Science – NASA's Europa Clipper
Europa Clipper’s Ultraviolet Spectrograph, or Europa-UVS, will collect ultraviolet light with a telescope and spread that light onto a detector for analysis. This instrument will help scientists identify atmospheric gases and surface materials at Europa. Europa-UVS will also search around Europa for further evidence that liquid water from within the moon is venting into space in the form of plumes.

Flight housing for the Europa-UVS (Europa Ultraviolet Spectrograph) instrument in early summer 2020, as it was about to begin assembly and testing. Credit: NASA/SWRI

MAss SPectrometer for Planetary EXploration/Europa
The MAss SPectrometer for Planetary EXploration/Europa, or MASPEX, will collect gases and “bounce” their charged ions back and forth within the instrument. By precisely timing their transit through the instrument, scientists can determine the mass of those charged gases. MASPEX will be used to study gases in Europa’s faint atmosphere for clues about its surface, its suspected subsurface ocean, and how the ocean and surface exchange material. The instrument will also be used to study how Jupiter’s radiation alters chemical compounds on Europa’s surface, and it will analyze any plume material being vented into space from ice-embedded liquid reservoirs.

The horizontal cylinder of varying diameter running across the top third of this image is an engineering (non-flight) model of Europa Clipper’s MASPEX mass spectrometer instrument in assembly and test. Credit: NASA/SWRI

Mapping Imaging Spectrometer for Europa
The Mapping Imaging Spectrometer for Europa, or MISE (pronounced “mize”), will collect infrared light reflected from Europa and separate it into its various wavelengths. Like a visible light camera, MISE will produce images, but these images depict the composition of surface materials. MISE will be used to map the distribution of ices, salts, organics, and the warmest hotspots on Europa. These maps will help determine if Europa’s suspected ocean is an environment suitable for life, and they will also help to characterize Europa’s geologic history.

MISE Dyson CaF2 Lens
Mission Dispatch: Imaging Spectrometer's First Light – NASA's Europa Clipper
“There are a few more pieces to integrate before the instrument is fully assembled, and every time a piece is added, the instrument goes through rigorous testing to verify it’s working and maintaining alignment and focus. Then the next piece is integrated.” There are many exciting milestones ahead as MISE makes its way to Europa.

Related content pages

Meet Europa Clipper

MISE

Meet Europa Clipper

NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft will conduct a detailed survey of Jupiter's moon Europa to determine whether the icy moon could harbor conditions suitable for life. Europa Clipper will carry an advanced suite of science instruments to discover whether Europa hosts environments suitable for life.

Meet the spacecraft ›

Why Europa?

Scientists are almost certain that hidden beneath the icy surface of Europa is a saltwater ocean thought to contain about twice as much water as Earth’s global ocean. It may be the most promising place in our solar system to find present-day environments suitable for some form of life beyond Earth.

Learn more about Europa › 

Related News Items

10 Things to Know About Europa Clipper's Science Instruments

 

Featured Resources

Europa's Plumes Located near 'Warm Spot' on Europa 

Possible Spectroscopy Results of Europa Using Webb

REASON

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Related News

Here are ten things to know about how Europa Clipper’s instruments will achieve the mission’s science objectives. 

10 Things to Know About Europa Clipper's Science Instruments

The most complex and demanding segment of Europa Clipper's trajectory is the three years when it performs repeated flybys of Jupiter's moon Europa. 

Mission Dispatch: Tweaking the Trajectory 

Finding plumes at Europa is an exciting prospect, but scientists warn it’ll be tricky, even from up close.

Are Water Plumes Spraying From Europa? NASA's Europa Clipper Is on the Case

In an unprecedented year, the Europa Clipper project continues on the path toward unprecedented science. 

On the Path Towards Unprecedented Science

NASA has decided to replace the current magnetometer on the upcoming Europa Clipper mission with a less complex instrument. 

NASA Seeks New Options for Science Instrument on Europa Clipper
Potential Plumes on Europa Could Come From Water in the Crust – NASA's Europa Clipper
NASA will host a Science Chat at 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. EDT Monday, May 14), to discuss the latest analysis of Jupiter’s moon Europa and its status as one of the most promising places in the solar system to search for life.

NASA Hosts Live Discussion about Europa Findings, Potential for Life

The Europa Clipper project team continues to grow as we move into more detailed design of the equipment, and it is gratifying to see such a geographically distributed team work well together. 

The Sextant: Europa Clipper Newsletter

This color-enhanced image of Jupiter and two of its largest moons – Io and Europa – was captured by NASA’s Juno spacecraft as it performed its eighth flyby of the gas giant planet.

Juno Observes Jupiter, Io and Europa

Two veteran NASA missions are providing new details about icy, ocean-bearing moons of Jupiter and Saturn.

NASA Missions Provide New Insights into 'Ocean Worlds' in Our Solar System

NASA's upcoming mission to investigate the habitability of Jupiter's icy moon Europa now has a formal name: Europa Clipper.

NASA Mission Named 'Europa Clipper'

A mission to examine the habitability of Jupiter's ocean-bearing moon Europa is taking one step closer to the launchpad, with the recent completion of a major NASA review.

NASA's Europa Flyby Mission Moves into Design Phase

Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have imaged what may be water vapor plumes erupting off the surface of Jupiter's moon Europa. 

NASA's Hubble Spots Possible Water Plumes Erupting on Jupiter's Moon Europa

A new NASA study modeling conditions in the ocean of Jupiter's moon Europa suggests that the necessary balance of chemical energy for life could exist there, even if the moon lacks volcanic hydrothermal activity.

Europa's Ocean May Have An Earthlike Chemical Balance

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Dome-Shaped Features on Europa

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Landscapes and Features of Europa

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Europa Clipper Vault Plate - Inward Facing Top

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Meet Europa Clipper

Instruments
A Voice Among the Stars: Poem by U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón Will Ride to Europa on NASA Spacecraft – NASA's Europa Clipper
NASA has selected Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) of Hawthorne, California, to provide launch services for Earth’s first mission to conduct detailed investigations of Jupiter's moon Europa.

NASA Awards Launch Services Contract for Europa Clipper Mission

Jupiter’s moon Europa and its global ocean may currently have conditions suitable for life. Scientists are studying processes on the icy surface as they prepare to explore.

Surface of Jupiter's Moon Europa Churned by Small Impacts

Jupiter’s icy moon Europa may be the most promising place in the solar system to find present-day environments suitable for life beyond Earth. 

Europa: A World of Ice, With Potential for Life

Jupiter’s moon Europa has an icy crust covering a vast, global ocean. The rocky layer underneath may be hot enough to melt, leading to undersea volcanoes.

Europa's Interior May Be Hot Enough to Fuel Seafloor Volcanoes

In an unprecedented year, the Europa Clipper project continues on the path toward unprecedented science. 

On the Path Towards Unprecedented Science

Jupiter’s moon Europa may have the potential to harbor life. The spacecraft will use multiple flybys of the moon to investigate the habitability of this ocean world.

NASA's Europa Clipper Builds Hardware, Moves Toward Assembly

Scientists have theorized on the origin of the water plumes possibly erupting from Jupiter's moon Europa. Recent research adds a new potential source to the mix.

Potential Plumes on Europa Could Come From Water in the Crust

New lab experiments re-create the environment of Europa and find that the icy moon shines, even on its nightside. The effect is more than just a cool visual.

Europa Glows: Radiation Does a Bright Number on Jupiter's Moon

The surface of Jupiter's moon Europa features a widely varied landscape, including ridges, bands, small rounded domes and disrupted spaces that geologists call "chaos terrain." Three newly reprocessed images, taken by NASA's Galileo spacecraft in the late 1990s, reveal details in diverse surface features on Europa.

Newly Reprocessed Images of Europa Show 'Chaos Terrain' in Crisp Detail
NASA's Europa Clipper Builds Hardware, Moves Toward Assembly – NASA's Europa Clipper
JPL is also building and testing the avionics subsystem, which includes the flight computer, the power switching and distribution hardware, the flight software needed to perform the science mission, and the ground system tools necessary to fly the mission. Also being built is ground support equipment that will be used to assemble and test Europa Clipper’s large pieces of flight hardware.
“It’s a very exciting time for the team, seeing the fruits of their work that will be orbiting Jupiter in a few years,” said Europa Clipper Deputy Project Manager Jordan Evans of JPL. “Even in the face of COVID-19, the team is firing on all cylinders. Using safe-at-work protocols, they’re performing the necessary work on the hardware while the rest of the team is getting their job done at home.”
A Sophisticated Suite
As this work moves forward, project leaders continue to plan the science of the mission. The spacecraft’s science instruments will measure the depth of the ice crust, measure the depth of the internal ocean and how thick and salty it is, capture color images of surface geology in detail, and analyze potential plumes.
Scientists are especially interested in what makes up the moon’s surface. Evidence suggests that material exposed there has been mixed through the icy crust and perhaps comes from the ocean beneath. Europa Clipper will also investigate the moon’s gravity field, which will tell scientists more about both how the moon flexes as Jupiter pulls on it and how that action could potentially warm the internal ocean.
“We’re doing work that a decade from now will change how we think about the diversity of worlds in the outer solar system – and about where life might be able to exist right now, not in the distant past,” said Europa Clipper Project Scientist Robert Pappalardo of JPL.
But the more instruments a spacecraft carries, the more they interact and potentially affect each other’s operation. To that end, noted Pappalardo, “We’re currently making sure the instruments can all operate at the same time without electromagnetic interference.”
The full suite of instruments will undergo extensive testing after they arrive at JPL in 2021. Early 2022 marks the start of assembly, test, and launch operations.