Science

Alien life breakthrough: NASA plans landmark mission to Europa in bid to find ET


The space agency has upped the ante in its mission to Europa, which is one of 79 moons orbiting Jupiter, after talking about the prospect of doing so for several years. Now the prospect of finding life is looking better, with NASA saying they will send the Europa Clipper spacecraft there sometime between 2023 and 2025. Named after a 19th century class of sailing ships, the Clipper space probe will enter orbit around the icy moon for close flybys.

The Clipper’s primary mission is to perform 40 to 45 flybys, involving surface investigations and high-resolution imaging of the moon.

Europa Clipper will have to complete flybys of the moon, rather than orbiting it, due to the danger of radiation from Jupiter fry the machine’s electronics, NASA said.

The spacecraft will be searching for alien life on the moon, which is believed to be an ideal candidate for life.

A statement from NASA said: “The Europa Clipper mission, launching in the 2020s, will be the first dedicated and detailed study of a probable ocean world beyond Earth.

“Jupiter’s moon Europa, slightly smaller than Earth’s Moon, may host a liquid water ocean under its frozen shell, making it a tantalising place to search for signs of life.

“The mission will conduct an in-depth exploration of Jupiter’s moon, Europa, and investigate whether the icy moon could harbour conditions suitable for life, honing our insights into astrobiology.”

The Europa Clipper will look for subsurface lakes and analyse the thickness of the moon’s icy surface.

When NASA first announced it was going to Europa it said there were three objectives from the potential mission: to discover whether there is, or has ever been, life on Europa, to assess whether the celestial body is habitable, and to analyse the surface of the moon for future missions.

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NASA is hoping to find whether Europa supports this theory.

Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said: “We are all excited about the decision that moves the Europa Clipper mission one key step closer to unlocking the mysteries of this ocean world.

“We are building upon the scientific insights received from the flagship Galileo and Cassini spacecraft and working to advance our understanding of our cosmic origin, and even life elsewhere.”



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