Journey to Jupiter

Journey to JupiterMission JunoBy Sid Thurmond

Mission Juno

Introduction

Juno is a NASA New Frontiers mission to the planet Jupiter. Juno was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on August 5, 2011 and will arrive in July 2016.

Mission

The spacecraft is to be placed in a polar orbit to study Jupiter's composition, gravity fields, magnetic fields, and polar ,magnetosphere. Juno 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, how its mass is distributed, and its deep winds, which can reach speeds of 618 kilometers per hour.

DataThe spinning satellite will photograph Jupiter's spectacular aurora and map its intense magnetic and gravitational fields for a year in a bid to understand the planet's formation and the inner workings that make it one of the most extraordinary bodies in the solar system.A major question Juno will seek to answer is the nature of the dynamo that generates Jupiter's powerful magnetic field, which is 20,000 times stronger than that of the Earth. On our home planet, the magnetic field is produced by a spinning core of molten iron.Other instruments aboard Juno will compile detailed maps of Jupiter's gravitational field to reveal how heavier elements are distributed throughout the planet, and confirm whether or not it has a sold rocky core.

Conclusion

Juno is a mission of discovery and exploration that will conduct an in-depth study of Jupiter, the most massive planet in our solar system. Peering through the clouds deep into Jupiter's atmosphere, the mission will reveal fundamental processes of the formation and early evolution of our solar system. Juno's goal is to understand the origin and evolution of the gas giant planet, which will pave the way to a better understanding of our solar system and other planetary systems being discovered around other stars.

References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juno_(spacecraft)http://www.spaceflight101.com/juno-mission-design-timeline-trajectories.htmlhttp://discoverynewfrontiers.nasa.gov/missions/missions_juno.cfml