While it’s not yet possible for humans to venture to the intriguing ocean worlds in our solar system, NASA is sending a cosmic message in a bottle to Jupiter’s moon Europa that will carry more than 2 million names.
As we approach the year’s end, here’s an exciting opportunity for you to leave your mark among the stars. By signing up before the year concludes, your name could be included in the cosmic journey of NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft.
Scheduled for launch in October 2024 from Kennedy Space Center, the Europa Clipper will embark on a monumental 1.8 billion-mile journey to Jupiter’s moon Europa. Arriving in orbit around 2030, this spacecraft will spend years conducting flybys of the ice-covered moon, investigating the potential for life in the ocean beneath its surface. Europa is recognized as one of the prime locations in our solar system to search for extraterrestrial life. the intriguing ocean
Adding a unique touch to this mission, the Europa Clipper will carry a poem penned by Ada Limón, the US poet laureate. Titled “In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa,” Limón’s original composition will be engraved in her handwriting on a tantalum metal plate, sealing the spacecraft’s delicate electronics within a protective vault. This vault shields the equipment from Jupiter’s intense radiation.
Moreover, your name can be etched alongside Limón’s poem. As part of NASA’s Message in a Bottle campaign, names submitted by participants will be added to the spacecraft. Technicians at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, will use electron beams to inscribe the names on dime-sized silicon chips. These chips, along with the poem, will reside inside the spacecraft’s vault.
Keep track of Europa Clipper’s assembly through NASA’s continuous live view on its website. The spacecraft, set to be the largest developed by NASA for a planetary mission, will span over 100 feet in width with deployed solar arrays and stand about 16 feet tall.
Upon reaching orbit in April 2030, Europa Clipper plans to conduct nearly 50 flybys of Europa, venturing as close as 16 miles above its ice crust. Equipped with cameras, spectrometers, ice-penetrating radar, and a thermal instrument, the spacecraft aims to unravel the mysteries of Europa’s formation and assess the potential habitability of icy ocean worlds. This extraordinary mission promises to expand our understanding of the universe and may offer insights into the existence of life beyond Earth.