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Juno (spacecraft)

Juno
Juno Transparent.png
Artist's rendering of the Juno spacecraft
Mission type Jupiter orbiter
Operator NASA / JPL
COSPAR ID 2011-040A
SATCAT no. 37773
Website
Mission duration Planned: 7 years
Elapsed: 5 years, 6 months, 14 days

Cruise: 5 years
Science phase: 2 years
Spacecraft properties
Manufacturer Lockheed Martin
Launch mass 3,625 kg (7,992 lb)
Dry mass 1,593 kg (3,512 lb)
Dimensions 20.1 × 4.6 m (66 × 15 ft)
Power 14 kW at Earth, 435 W at Jupiter
2 × 55-A·h lithium-ion batteries
Start of mission
Launch date August 5, 2011, 16:25 (2011-08-05UTC16:25) UTC
Rocket Atlas V 551 (AV-029)
Launch site Cape Canaveral SLC-41
Contractor United Launch Alliance
Flyby of Earth
Closest approach October 9, 2013
Distance 559 km (347 mi)
Jupiter orbiter
Orbital insertion July 5, 2016, 03:53 UTC
7 months, 14 days ago
Orbits 37 (planned)
Orbit parameters
Perijove 4,200 km (2,600 mi) altitude
75,600 km (47,000 mi) radius
Apojove 8.1 million kilometers
Inclination 90 degrees (polar orbit)

Juno mission insignia.svg
Juno mission insignia


Juno mission insignia.svg
Juno mission insignia

Juno is a NASA space probe orbiting the planet Jupiter. It was built by Lockheed Martin and is operated by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The spacecraft was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on August 5, 2011 (UTC), as part of the New Frontiers program, and entered a polar orbit of Jupiter on July 5, 2016 (UTC), to begin a scientific investigation of the planet. After completing its mission, Juno will be intentionally deorbited into Jupiter's atmosphere.

Juno's mission is to measure Jupiter's composition, gravity field, magnetic field, and polar magnetosphere. It will also search for clues about how the planet formed, including whether it has a rocky core, the amount of water present within the deep atmosphere, mass distribution, and its deep winds, which can reach speeds of 618 kilometers per hour (384 mph).

Juno is the second spacecraft to orbit Jupiter, after the nuclear powered Galileo orbiter, which orbited from 1995 to 2003. Unlike all earlier spacecraft to the outer planets,Juno is powered only by solar arrays, commonly used by satellites orbiting Earth and working in the inner Solar System, whereas radioisotope thermoelectric generators are commonly used for missions to the outer Solar System and beyond. For Juno, however, the three largest solar array wings ever deployed on a planetary probe play an integral role in stabilizing the spacecraft as well as generating power.


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