The European Space Agency (ESA) has released the first selfie images of the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) with Earth in the background.
The newly released images were taken just hours after JUICE, the first spacecraft to orbit the moons of another planet, launched from the spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, at 19:14 on April 14 (Hanoi time). The spacecraft ascended into space aboard an Ariane 5 rocket after missing a previous launch window on April 13 due to poor weather conditions.
Earth receding into the background (left) and the longest antenna of the JUICE spacecraft (right) in the first selfies of the spacecraft in space. (Photo: ESA).
JUICE is equipped with multiple cameras, including two mounted on the body to monitor the deployment of various systems such as solar panels and antennas, as reported by Space on April 18. These cameras are responsible for the first quick selfie images, with a resolution of 1024 x 1024 pixels. The images were then processed and slightly color-adjusted.
JUICE Monitoring Camera 1 (JMC1) is located at the front of the spacecraft, angled diagonally to observe part of the solar panel system. It can also see the spacecraft’s antennas once they are deployed. Additionally, the spacecraft is equipped with JUICE Monitoring Camera 2 (JMC2), which is located on the top of the spacecraft and will observe the 16-meter-long Radar for Icy Moon Exploration (RIME) antenna.
The main mission of RIME, which is currently being stowed and is expected to deploy in stages soon, is to explore beneath the icy crust of three of Jupiter’s moons: Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. This work will assist scientists in investigating the hidden subsurface oceans beneath the icy surfaces of these moons. Scientists will explore whether these moons have environments suitable for life.
JUICE also has a scientific camera designed to capture high-resolution images of Jupiter and its icy moons. The spacecraft is expected to arrive at the Jupiter system in 2031, after an 8-year journey.
The monitoring cameras will operate throughout the mission, even when the spacecraft returns near Earth, expected in August 2024, to receive gravity assistance (utilizing the gravity of celestial bodies to change direction and gain speed) from the Earth-Moon system. This will be the first Earth-Moon gravity assist (LEGA) performed in the history of space travel.
The cameras may also capture impressive images of Venus when JUICE receives gravity assistance from this planet in 2025. The spacecraft will visit Earth again in 2026 for its final gravity assist before heading to Jupiter’s orbit.
